


The Secret

by Pansychic27213



Series: Vlad is a Morally Grey Dad [2]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Angst, But also because my writing was really wack like wow, But that is still very problematic, Danny has issues, Danny's emotions are all over the place, Everyone is mildly a terrible person?, Everyone is way out of character, Except Danny who's a smol bean, Gen, I apologize for existing, I don't know how I thought any of this was okay honestly, I have issues, I really don't like Jack and Maddie, I think I had some serious issues, I was a Good Christian Child I swear, Mostly because of Dark Dan, No rape; just groping, Protective Vlad Masters, Seriously no one is okay in this, Sorry not sorry?, Suicide Attempt, There's no mafia this time?, Vlad attempts to be fatherly?, Vlad has Issues, We all have issues, Wow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-19 12:10:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18135569
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pansychic27213/pseuds/Pansychic27213
Summary: Danny has been having nightmares about Dark Dan, which have seriously messed with his emotions and sense of reality. After the worst day of his life, Vlad offers him refuge, but Danny's emotional distress prevents him from finding any comfort...





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally Written: Some time in 2014? I never published this one because a friend told me it was very dramatic.
> 
> Which is a little funny, considering how dramatic the rest of my works from that period were. But this fic is especially dramatic, so I feel like I should warn you that this doesn't make sense, there's a lot of crying, and a lot of really messed up stuff happens, including attempted suicide, numerous graphic nightmares, and a scene of non-con groping.
> 
> Not to mention Danny and Vlad's serious issues, which really do not get resolved!

**The Secret**

 -{[(-)]}-

     Fire danced across the rooftops. Shattered glass littered the cracked pavement. Overturned cars poked out of buildings, and broken lampposts laid in blazing trees. Smoke clouded the dark night sky, blocking out any moonlight and darkening the town.

     The damage to the town wasn't the worst of it. Blood was splattered against walls. Limp bodies lay broken all over the place-the tops of buildings, half-way out of cars, on the roads-and created an even darker atmosphere, though this darkness was more psychological. The screaming of innocent, dying citizens still rang through the air, even though they had been silenced long ago.

     A young teenager ran through the dark town. His baby blue eyes had long since lost their happy innocence. His black hair was pasted to his forehead with sweat. His dirty shirt waved out wildly behind him. The legs of his jeans had been ripped off by the demon that pursued him. Bare feet pounded on the black asphalt before the teen ducked into an alley. He knew that he didn't have long, so he pushed himself as far back into the corner as he could go and squeezed his eyes shut in pure terror. He wrapped his arms over his head and slid down the wall, pulling his knees to his chest.

     "Dan-ny!" A dark voice rang out. "I'll find you! Just you wait. I'll CATCH up."

     "I promised. I shouldn't be afraid. No need to worry. Nope," the teen whispered to himself.

     "Silly boy! A promise isn't any good against yourself! You STILL become me!" The voice taunted. He was at the end of the alleyway now, watching-waiting.

     "No! No. No, I promised. It won't happen," the boy stated, but it sounded more like a plead.

     "You just end up locked up in Clockwork's tower, Danny. Only criminals get locked up. Criminals," the voice paused-it was closer now, definitely right in front of the boy-,"like murderers." And the boy made a big mistake; he opened his eyes.

 

     I screamed and bolted upright in bed at the sound of my alarm clock. I was out of bed in a second, half-way through my transformation into Danny Phantom. Realizing that it had only been my alarm, I calmed and reversed the transformation so I remained human. I ran a shaky hand through my hair.

     The nightmares were getting worse. Majorly worse. Royally worse. It sucked. I needed to find a solution before I cracked. True, it was only a nightmare, but watching your loved ones die repeatedly-or at all- is never fun.

     I shook away my thoughts and quickly got ready for school. Sadly, it was Thursday, which is Dash's least favorite day of the week. Why? I shall never know. All I know is, he's unhappy, so I have to stick up for some nerds because Thursday is also Nerd Poker day. Joy.

     I jogged down the stairs and waved a goodbye to my parents, who barely acknowledged my presence. Before I could be saddened by that, I was out the door and on my way to Tucker's house. I knocked politely on the door, even though it would have been perfectly fine if I decided to just walk in and say, "I'm home!"

     "Oh. Hey, Danny," Tucker greeted in a nasally voice when he opened the door. He was in a robe, and his hat was missing.

     "What's wrong?" I asked immediately.

     "Hello to you too!" He laughed. He coughed into his elbow and sniffled. "I'm sick. I threw up last night."

     "I'm sorry, dude! That sucks!" I apologized. "Unfortunately, you're going to miss out on some great nerd poker."

     "Darn!" He chuckled. We laughed until he began to cough violently.

     "Tucker Joshua Foley! You get back into bed this instant!" Mrs.Foley screamed from somewhere within the house.

     "Okay, mom!" Tucker shouted back hoarsely.

     "I really am sorry, man. Hope you get better. See you soon?" I hoped.

     "I don't know-maybe? Bye," he waved.

     "Yeah, bye," I responded. He closed the door quietly, and my heart sank as I jogged back down his front steps. Well, that's a real bummer. I mean, it's terrible that he's sick and all, but now we have one less "Ghost Getter" as Jazz calls us. It won't be funny without him. Not it that it was ever funny, but...you get the point.

     I continued on my way to the rendezvous corner where I would meet Sam for school. I don't pick her up at her house because her parents hate me. Like, a lot. So I stood patiently until my phone rang.

     "Hello, this is Danny," I answered.

     "Hey, Danny. It's Sam," she informed.

     "Cool. Where are you?" I questioned and glanced around at the empty streets.

     "My parents are taking me on vacation," she sighed.

     "That's awesome! Where?" I inquired, feigning excitement. There goes another friend today. Dang it! Sam's my last defense against Dash! Not that I use her or anything, but sometimes she's a great help!

     "Utah," she stated, and I could sense the eye roll from here. Realizing that I needed to get to school, I started walking in that direction.

     "How long will you be gone?" I asked.

     "Why? You gonna miss me?" She teased. I laughed.

     "Not really. I just need to know how long I have to plan parties at your place," I smirked. I heard an over-exaggerated gasp.

     "Don't you dare!" She ordered, holding back laughter of her own. We both chuckled. "I'll be gone for two weeks."

     "Two weeks?" I realized. I whistled. "Dang girl! That's a long time!"

     "I know, right? And they're making me wear"-insert angry air quotes here-"'normal teenage clothing!'" She pouted.

     "Aw, it can't be that bad. Just t-shirts and jeans, right?" I tried to comfort her.

     "Not at all! My mom has two suitcases of pink things and sun dresses! I'm going to die!" She yelled. I winced and held the phone further away from my ear. I slowly brought it back when I thought I could hear again.

     "Do you still have that black spray paint I bought you?" I questioned. I heard a small snort.

     "Of course," she answered.

     "Just sneak that into your bag before you leave," I suggested.

     "Oh my goodness, Danny, you're the best!" She cried. "Thanks!"

     "Eh, don't mention it." I paused and noticed I was standing on the sidewalk in front of Casper High. "Look, I gotta go-"

     "Okay, hero. Have a nice day in prison," she joked. Ah, taunting smirk I can sense.

     "I'll try. See you in two weeks," I smiled sadly.

     "Kay. Bye." And the call ended there. I closed my phone and shoved it into my pocket, already hunched over. Two friends in one day, plus a bad nightmare and inattentive parents. My day was going to be just swell.

     I entered the school and tried to approach my locker, only for Dash to pants me on his way by. I rolled my eyes and pulled them back up again, glaring in his general direction. Really? How original, Dash. Correction, maybe this was his favorite day of the week.

     I managed to collect my materials for class, and I was almost on time to class too, if it wasn't for the Box Ghost. He appeared out of thin air and scared away everyone in the hallway. He soon proclaimed himself as the Locker Ghost and summoned everyone's things out of their lockers. Like the Lunch Lady. I swung into action and tried to suck him into a thermos. He quickly dodged and used his new 'locker powers' to trap me in one. I aimed the thermos in the direction of his voice and pressed the button, finally sucking him inside. But I could hear someone out in the hallway, so I couldn't just phase out of the locker.

     "Hey! Hello! A ghost locked me in the locker! Could you let me out?" I called.

     "Hey! I think it's Fenton!" Oh, that was Kwan. And wherever Kwan was-

     "Stupid geek can't even run from a ghost. I bet he peed his pants!" Dash snorted. Dang it!

     "Should we let him out or leave him?" Kwan suggested.

     "Eh, leave him. Ms.Tetslaff doesn't have any students this period, so I'm sure she'll find him and make him run laps," Dash shrugged as they walked past.

     "Oh come on!" I complained.

     "Hey! There's all his stuff!" Kwan noticed. I grimaced at my misfortune.

     "Let's go dump it in the boy's locker room showers!" Dash laughed.

     "No! Guys! Come on!" I protested. I heard cruel chuckling as the two jocks gathered my things and bolted for the locker rooms. I rolled my eyes in defeat and intangibly stepped through the locker door. Out of habit, I glanced at the locker number, only to find it was MY locker. The Box Ghost-I mean, Locker Ghost stuffed me in MY OWN LOCKER. I'm pathetic!!!

     With those uplifting thoughts and an irritated sigh, I hurried to catch up with Dash and Kwan to see if I could stop them from ruining my textbooks.

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     "Mr.Fenton, would you please try to explain to me why you thought it would be okay TO DEFACE SCHOOL PROPERTY?!" Mr.Lancer yelled. I cringed and leaned away.

     "It was an accident, Mr.Lancer. I'm really sorry. I tried to save them-I really did- but the water was everywhere," I lied. He ran a hand down his face.

     "That is still no excuse. And you were still late to class. This is the fourth time this week! I'm afraid I have to give you a detention, and there will be a fine for the damaged materials," he sentenced. I hung my head tiredly.

     "Yes, Mr.Lancer. How much?" I inquired.

     "Each textbooks costs about $60. Three were completely ruined, so I'll have to figure out the numbers with the other teachers," he murmured thoughtfully, no doubt already calculating the total. My shoulders drooped in a tired way. This was great! Just great! I'm failing my classes already, and now I don't even have the books I need, plus I have to pay over a hundred dollars in fees! I don't have that kind of money!

     "Of course, Mr.Lancer. Again, I'm sorry," I repeated.

     "I'll see you after school, Mr.Fenton," he declared forcefully as he handed me the pink detention slip. I nodded submissively and moved to my seat. Dash and Kwan snickered as I started to go past. Dash abruptly stuck his foot in front of mine, effectively tripping me. The pile of books in my arms went flying. The girls in the next few seats shrieked and leant away, glaring at me hatefully while I laid on the floor.

     "Mr.Fenton!" Lancer called sharply. I rolled my eyes, stood and dusted myself off. Next, I quickly gathered my things and took my seat. The seats on my left and right were both empty, painfully reminding me that Sam and Tucker were going to be gone for a long time. A deep sigh escaped my lips along with a small blue wisp. I groaned and raised my hand.

     "May I use the restroom?"

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     Classes had been dreadfully boring all day, Dash had picked on me as much as he could, I had received three more detentions, four ghosts had attacked, and sleep deprivation from nightmares nagged at me all the way until lunch. I would have fallen asleep into my mystery meat if Dash hadn't already shoved my face into it. I then had to excuse myself from my empty lunch table to wash my face off in the bathroom. But I wasn't pleased with what happened next.

     Dash and his cronies just walked in and blocked the door as I finished drying my face. "Fenton." I glanced up from paper towels at the sound of my last name.

     A defensive "Yes?" was my simple response. I threw the paper towels in the trash and shifted my weight to my other foot, prepping myself for whatever might come.

     Dash just smirked. "It's Thursday."

     And with that, I found my head being dunked in the toilet repeatedly. Luckily for me, it was empty of feces or urine. Unluckily, Dash had somehow forced the flusher stuck and the toilet water wouldn't stop swirling.

     After a good twenty dunks, Dash gave me about two seconds to breathe. Just as I sucked in a huge breath, he forced me back down. My arms failed in panic when he didn't release or pull me back up. I managed to use the tiniest about of ghost strength to push myself up for a moment to gasp for air. But I was quickly back under.

    Eventually, Dash was bored of that. So he dragged me to the largest stall at the end of the row and locked it behind us while I still sputtered for breath, grasping my throat. My damp hair hung in my eyes, and the neck of my shirt was drenched. But I could care less. There was too much water in my lungs and it was painful to breathe.

     I managed to cough up a bit of water just as Dash approached me. And kicked me in the stomach, knocking any air I had out of me. Then he reigned down on me with punches and kicks. Seeing that he was really only human-meaning not much a threat, I just covered my head with my arms and curled away. But he didn't let up, and I could almost feel the bruises forming.

     I knew the bruises would be healed by tomorrow because of my ghost-half's advanced healing.... But why was he doing this? What had made him so upset? Surely this couldn't be over a poor grade or loss of his beloved soap operas?

     Normally, I wouldn't have cared. But this was a human, teenage boy beating me mercilessly, and I didn't feel like I was supposed to fight back. Maybe it was wrong somehow because of my powerful advantage? Or I felt I deserved it because of my future evil doings? No matter why I let it happen, it needed to stop because I think my wrist was almost broken at this point.

     So I tried to get his attention, "Dash." He didn't listen and kept trying to kick my gut again. I gasped as he hit his target and curled in on myself a bit more. That hurt! That actually, really hurt! "Dash!" He paused in his assault, and suddenly my voice trembled and I was somewhat afraid.

     "What, Fenton?" His cold tone made me shiver. I wasn't afraid of ghosts. I could fight them. But humans? They were unpredictable, and it was wrong to hurt humans. I may stop robberies and stuff, but I was the hero. I didn't hurt humans. So for this human, Dash, to be so malevolent and violent, I felt cornered.

     "Please," I rasped, hating the way my voice shook. What was I going to do to get out of this without hurting him? "Stop." I was begging for mercy. He must not understand what he was doing. Maybe he needed to vent? But my wrist was more then likely broken, and it hurt to breathe more than when the water had been in my lungs.

     But I must have overestimated Dash's character, because he didn't hesitate to do the cruelest thing he had ever done. He leaned closer and whispered in my ear two simple, evil words, "Make me."

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     I was late to class because of Dash and his cronies. They were late too, but they were excused and got away scot-free. I, on the other hand, got a call to my parents, informing them of my fifth detention in one day. My parents responded calmly, but I could feel their anger from the school. The principal decided that because I couldn't serve five detentions in one day, I would serve two and do an hour of service afterwards.

     Afternoon classes crawled by at a deathly slow pace, but it was time for my detentions all to soon. Sadly, I had yet to tend to my broken wrist, which was more of sprained now thanks to my ghostly healing. But Mr.Lancer, the detention supervisor, made me work on an essay I had failed to turn in. I bit the inside of my cheek and held back at wince at the screaming pain in my wrist, as I wrote, by hand, a three page report. And another, four-page paper. And did two pages of algebra homework. And worked on today's homework.

     By the end of the first detention, it was all I could to hold back tears. And the second detention wasn't any better. The teachers purposefully assigned more homework for me than was required today and had me work on that while they discussed the fees for the damaged books in front of me.

     A near silent whimper escaped my lips when my pencil slipped and my wrist hit the side of the desk. I quickly dropped my pencil and cradled my wrist in my lap. Not one of the teachers noticed, and it seemed they had decided to add fees for other damaged school property to the bill. Even things that I hadn't broken or destroyed were being added to my fines. The bill was getting larger and larger, until it totaled almost a thousand dollars.

     "What are you doing just staring at us, Fenton! Get back to work!" Ms.Teteslaff barked. I nodded quietly and picked up my pencil. But I quickly bit back a cry of pain for my beaten wrist. Once again, not a single teacher noticed, and I was back to doing extra science work.

     Fortunately, my second detention was over soon. Now all I had to do was my hour of service. Unfortunately, I was stuck doing manual labor while some of the teachers had espressos from the lounge and ate donuts. My stomach rumbled jealously, due to my lack of breakfast and lunch. In fact, I can't remember the last time I ate, but I know it wasn't enough.

     Back to my hour of manual labor, I was told to clean all the windows in the school, which didn't take nearly long enough even though my wrist almost had me screaming every time I even grabbed something. And then I had to scrape all the gum from under the desks. When my supervisor left for a moment to get another donut, I actually started wiping away tears because my wrist hurt so badly. But he was back quickly, and I got yelled at for not continuing what I was supposed to do.

     Eventually, it was time for me to return home. Mr.Lancer drove me back, recognizing how tired I was from the hard work. I was grateful, but he ignored me the whole way there.

     Even worse, my parents were waiting at the bottom of the steps to meet me when I got home. I silently got out of the car and allowed myself to be ignored off to the side as Mr.Lancer explained the fines for damaged property. Once he was gone, my mother brought me inside my the collar of my shirt and practically threw me on to the couch, already yelling about how much of a screwup I was.

     My grades weren't good enough. I was late and absent too much. I destroyed too much stuff. I neglected my chores. I came home past curfew. I spent too much time goofing off. I fell asleep in class.

     I just sat there silently and took it, not saying a word of objection as much as I felt that I deserved to. All of that was because of my ghost powers, bullying, and my ghost hunting. I didn't have time to do my homework or sleep or do my chores or eat anymore. I didn't even goof off at all. Any time I had with Sam and Tucker was spent relaxing because in the next second I could be fighting for my life...or afterlife. And DASH destroyed all of that stuff, not ME!

     But still, I didn't say a single word. Although, my head snapped up in surprise when my mom demanded that I earn the money to pay for the damaged items. My eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and my hand nervously began playing with the hem of my shirt.

     "Mom, I don't have any money," I debated softly.

     "THAT'S WHY I SAID YOU'LL EARN IT! DANIEL JAMES FENTON, YOU WILL NOT LEAVE THIS HOUSE UNTIL EVERY CENT IS ACCOUNTED FOR!" She yelled. And just like that, I was grounded once again. I held back an angry sigh. All that I ever got in return for my heroics was punishment. It was so NOT FAIR!

     "And you can start by doing your chores that you've been neglecting! Those won't even count because you should have been doing them already!" My dad decided loudly. "You can wash the dishes, clean the lab, clean your room, clean the living room, do the laundry...." The list went on for a while.

     "Jack, honey, he can't possibly do all of that tonight," my mom softened. A tiny spark of hope ignited in my chest.

     "Of course he can! He's a Fenton, and I bet he can do it all!" My dad argued. The spark of hope faded and a dead weight settled in the pit of my stomach. "Danny-boy, you need to get started though." I was frozen in shock, and I quickly glanced to mom.

     "Well, I guess he can probably get most of it done. If he can't, he can just do it tomorrow morning and after school," she thought as she placed a finger on her chin. "Yes, Danny. Go get started." I sighed and stood from the couch.

     "You brought this all on yourself you know," she added quietly, assuming I couldn't hear her. My hands trembled ever so slightly as I continued on my way to the kitchen to wash the dishes.

     My parents must be really disappointed. I know that I'm actually doing the right thing by saving people, but am I hurting people more with all of my disappearing acts and slipping grades?

     The dish soap made my eyes water, and my chest struggled to fight the strong chemicals I was breathing in. My lungs burned, and my wrist still begged with me to stop overusing it, but I had to do the dishes or else my parents would get mad. I don't even think they would care at this point if I had a sprained wrist.

     It felt like eternity had passed before I was finished. Then I jogged downstairs to clean the lab, thinking it would be easy. I heard the door click shut and lock behind me. I jolted and tried to open the door.

     "Danny, we just want to make sure you don't try to escape doing your chores. We'll let you out when you're done," my mom's voice reassured not-so-reassuringly through the door. So they were going to lock me in here until I cleaned the lab?! Were they insane? What if the ventilation system broke and I didn't get any oxygen? What if a ghost broke in through the portal? What if I broke my leg or something?

     On the other hand, this allowed me to use my ghostly advantage to get this done faster. Flying and ecto-blasts really did wonders when you're trying to clean.

     I turned, only to have my jaw drop at the mess before me. Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, was covered in goop or slime or invention parts or dismantled weapons or broken ecto-glass. This place was a total land mine for ghosts. There was no way I could use any ghost powers.

     I groaned and hurried down the steps to the tiled floor. I grabbed a trash bag out of a cabinet and began to pick up broken glass and machinery, but all the while, the portal gave me this creepy feeling. Vaguely, I realized that it was actually locked and nothing could come through. But the feeling was more from my memories of the Accident, the day I got my ghost powers. The hard way.

     It wasn't long before I noticed that I was timidly avoiding making any moves towards the portal or even looking at it. It was freaking me out. A lot. I needed to finish cleaning the lab soon before I had a total melt down.

     I grabbed a sponge and prepared myself to clean up the goop and slime that coated everything. I knelt down and started to move the sponge back and forth, but some of it splashed up on to my lower arm and I cried out. It burned! Holy cow, it BURNED! It was like someone took boiling water off the stove and dumped it directly on to my arm!

     "Danny! I don't want to hear any excuses because you're not coming out until you're done, so don't try to pull anything!" My mom scolded, mistaking my cry as a way to make her open the door.

     "Yes, mom!" I called back and held the pain out of my voice. I tried cleaning again, but I had to hold back tears and more cries of pain because every time the sponge moved, more goop splashed on my arm.

     Even longer than the eternity that the dishes took later, I was back outside the lab, cleaning the living room. Dust floated off of everything and made me sneeze. My wrist ached like crazy, my lungs still burned, my nose itched from all of the sneezing, and my arms felt like they were on FIRE. This day was going just SWELL.

 

-{[(•)]}-


	2. Chapter 2

-{[(•)]}-

 

     I learned later that my family had eaten dinner while I cleaned the lab, but my dad had hungrily devoured the rest of the food so I didn't get any dinner. At all. Which sucked, because now I hadn't eaten in over a day. Or slept.

     So now I waited patiently for Sam to pick up the phone, desperately hoping her sweet voice would bring me out of my depression. She did pick up, but she didn't say anything like I had expected her too. Instead she demanded answers harshly, "What, Danny?! Why are you calling me?! Do you know what time it is?!"

     "Sam, it's not even eleven yet," I teased. Maybe I was going to have to lighten her mood. Oh well, either way I'd still feel better-

     "I know that, DANIEL! I've been on a plane since you hung up this morning!!! I AM EXHAUSTED!" She cried angrily.

     "I'm sorry. Where are you now?" I asked quietly in an effort to get her to calm.

     "DON'T GIVE ME ANY OF THAT CRAP. I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT! I DON'T WANT TO LISTEN TO YOUR MISERABLE SOB STORY EITHER SO JUST HANG UP!" She yelled. I cringed. Why did she just assume that I wanted to complain about my day?

     "Sam, I-" I attempted, but the call ended. I stared at my phone in disbelief. Did she just hang up on me?! No, no. Sam would never do that. She hates it when people so that. She's going to call back any second now.

     So I waited for her to call. And I waited. And waited. And she didn't call. Or text. Or send me any kind of communication. She really did hang up. And all because she assumed I was going to start complaining about my day. She must be really tired. Or upset. Was she upset with me and only expressed it because she was tired? Does she feel this way all the time? How often do I complain?

     Slightly confused, I called Tucker for answers. He picked up after quite a few rings, which startled me, because Tucker loves to play with his technology.

     "What, Danny?" He inquired in an exasperated tone.

     "Are you mad at me?" I asked in surprise.

     "No, I'm tired. Gosh, Danny! How long did it take you to forget I was sick?" He muttered angrily. I blinked.

     "Someone's cranky!" I laughed.

     "Shut up," he replied, but his response wasn't humorous or teasing.

     "Oh, come on! I was joking!" I protested.

     "And I'm not. Listen, Danny, I really don't appreciate being made fun of, and I really don't want to listen to whatever you called about. If it's a ghost, I'm sure you can handle it. If it's not a ghost, screw off 'cause I need to sleep." And the call ended there. Why was he so mad at me? Did I do something wrong? Why he just upset because he was sick? Or was he really mad at me? Or was he joking?

     Just in case, I waited by the phone for a couple minutes longer. And I waited. And waited. And just like before, he didn't call. Nothing. Zilch. Zip. Did I just complain so much that I drove people away?

     Starting to worry a little, I crossed the hall and knocked quietly on Jazz's door. A soft 'come in' came from inside, so I pushed the door open and entered. She didn't even glance up from her homework as I stood there awkwardly.

     "What do you need?" She questioned. Her voice almost sounded irritated, but I couldn't tell why.

     "Tucker and Sam are being all weird. They hung up on me after getting angry for no reason," I explained. She sighed and turned to face me with an over-dramatic roll of her eyes.

     "Danny, what did you call them about?" She asked. Again, that irritation was present.

     "Well, I was hoping to joke around with Sam a bit, but she kind of yelled at me and hung up. So I called Tucker to see if we could figure out why-" I was stopped by her hand in the air.

     "Gosh, you're just so selfish," she muttered. She rolled her eyes again, assuming I hadn't heard her. Why would she say that? Did she really think that? She turned back to her homework and starting writing again. "Danny, Sam and Tucker have lives away from you. You can't just call them whenever you feel like it."

     "But, Jazz! They told me specifically to call whenever!" I protested.

     "Oh my gosh, Danny! You were calling them because you were expecting something from them. You're upset because you didn't get it. It's almost eleven at night, Danny! You can't just call them!" She cried. I stepped back and blinked away a tiny tear. She really did think I was selfish. And she pretty much hated me for it. My own sister, my SISTER, thought I was SELFISH, even though she KNEW that I saved the ENTIRE town on a regular basis and sacrificed EVERYTHING for it!

     "I-I...." I stuttered. Why did everyone hate me? What had I ever done? Did I not say thank you enough? Did I really complain too much? Was I just a burden for everyone to deal with?

     My ghost sense escape my mouth with the accompaniment of a shiver down my spine. "Go on, hero. Go save the town," Jazz muttered angrily. She even thought I was selfish when she knew I was going to go stop a ghost from possibly killing someone!!!

     I bit back a surprised whimper at her newfound hatred of me and opted to flee into my room. I locked the door behind me, transformed into Phantom, and flew off to battle the ghost.

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     Half an hour after eleven, Skulker and I battled above Amity Park. I was tired, and all of the stress from today had worn on my body. I couldn't hold out much longer. I had to finished this quickly.

     Suddenly, Skulker shot me in the chest with another one of his missiles. But this one expanded and wrapped around me tightly, electrocuting me. I held back yet another cry of pain. I could not let him have the satisfactory of hearing me scream. It would not happen. But the watts of electricity suddenly increased, and I was drawing blood from how hard I was biting down on my lip.

     I reverted back to human and dropped out of the sky like a rock. I angled the thermos at Skulker, and barely managed to suck him in before the thermos was ripped from my hands by the wind. No longer having Skulker around, the missile that had wrapped itself around me vanished and I transformed back into Phantom. But the victory was short lived as I crashed into a cardboard box in a dark alley way and was reminded of my nightmare. Purely out of shock, I reverted back into my human form.

     That's when the day reigned down on me like a ton of bricks. Everything washed over me like a wave, and extreme depression overtook me.

     Nobody loved me anymore. Nobody cared if I was hurt. No one cared. No one would listen to my problems or help me. I was alone. I was truly, absolutely alone. There was no other way I could see it. Everyone I thought I trusted, even remotely, had pushed me away and hurt me. Nobody loved me. No one cared.

     My fingers traveled up to my hairs and threaded themselves in the ebony locks. My knees pulled themselves to my chest. Sobs wracked my body.

     One day. One day was all it took for everyone to decide they hated me. Maybe my parents didn't hate me completely, but they still hated my ghost half, and they mostly ignored me. Except when I got in trouble. Then they punished me like I deserved only the worst. Maybe...maybe they did hate me?

     And everyone was angry at me for some reason or another. No one wanted to listen to what I had to say. No one cared if I hurt. No one was willing to help me. I was alone. And that hurt even more than the sprained wrist and burning arms and rasping lungs.

     But even worse still, were the nightmares that plagued me for the past two months. Now that no body cared, would anybody try to stop me from becoming evil? Would I murder everyone out of my resentment? Would they still hate me, even after my family passed away?

     Would I really become evil and kill everyone? Why would I become evil? How many people would I murder? Would I really live out my nightmares? Would I force others to watch their loved ones die? Would I actually be able to tear people limb from limb and decapitate them? The fear of my future was crippling.

     And I wanted the nightmares to stop! They were horrible! I can't take it anymore! How many times must I watch myself kill everyone I care about, even if they did hate me? How much more will I be powerless to stop their deaths before my very eyes?

     So in a cardboard box, at the end of a dark alleyway, I sobbed. I shook. I wept. I trembled. I cried, for lack of a better word. Sadness and fear and depression and anxiety and loneliness welled up within me. I almost didn't noticed the shadow that loomed at the end of the alleyway.

 

-{[(V)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mixed humor and angst horribly; none of the jokes land because they all happen during such tense, serious moments, when there really shouldn't have been any jokes....
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: What got you into Danny Phantom? Did you watch the show on Nickelodean? Did you discover it elsewhere? Did a friend show you?


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: This chapter is by far the most graphic. Danny has a nightmare, and his emotions and imagination continually escalate the situation into something... really disturbing. Like, Dark Dan eats organs, disturbing.

-{[(V)]}-

 

     It had been an irritatingly boring day, today. Ghost attacks had been low, so I was somewhat satisfied to know that Daniel might be having a good day. Nothing bad had happened that required the mayor. So the days of Amity Park's citizens had been good. My assistant had taken the day off. So her day was good. But as for me, I thought my day was so boring that it was actually stressful. So around midnight, I decided to take a little flight around town to clear my head of today.

     I flew straight from my mansion into the night air. There was an almost unsettling chill in the air, and unpleasant feelings wafted around. I ignored the strange vibe in the air and continued on my way. I didn't intend on being out for long, but I did want to at least see most of the city.

     It was after I had passed most of the more popular places in town, that I began flying through the residential area. It was quiet. Too quiet. Something pestered at me to leave and go home, but I am not easily persuaded. I stubbornly flew on until I heard muffled cries nearby. Curiously, I floated towards the source of the noise. The sobbing softened, and I felt pity for whatever poor creature waited at the end of this alley.

     "Hello?" I questioned. This was a bit strange, even for me. I floated back ever so slightly as a shaky hand rose from the darkness. The sobbing was even quieter now, as though the owner of the cries and the hand were ashamed. I ignited a small amount of my magenta fire in my palm so I could see the person better. A terrified gasp escaped their lips, and the hand flinched away.

     "Who's there?" I demanded. The form of a person trembled and the sobs intensified, but remained quiet. I started to make out a familiar head of midnight hair. "Daniel?" The sobbing increased if that was possible, and said teen leapt out of the box and wrapped his lanky arms round my waist. His face was buried in my chest, and his own chest heaved with great cries. He sounded pained.

     "Daniel? Daniel, are you alright? What happened?" I asked in surprise. I did my best to remain calm, but the teen's frantic state was not helping.

     "Make him stop. Make him stop," he begged. I felt heat rise within me at his words. So someone had done this to him. What could have done that? What was so cruel to make a child beg for mercy?

     I hardly noticed the heat increasing in my palm with my growing hatred for this new development. I didn't even recognize how hot it was until Daniel whimpered and leaned away. I glanced down at him. His face was still buried in my chest, but he was positioning himself as far as he could get from my fiery hand. I quickly extinguished the light, and Daniel's sobs continued quietly. With a deep breath, I stooped quickly and lifted him up bridal style. He adjusted to my movements to clutch fistfuls of my tunic and cry into my chest still.

     I was slightly hesitant at his behavior. Completely submissive and afraid. He didn't even protest being lifted this way as he had in the past. In fact, he calmed a little, as if he liked the motion.

     "Alright, let's get you back," I sighed. He certainly wasn't going home on his own. Jasmine could take care of this, or that Samantha girl-

     "No! No! Please don't make me go back! They hate me! Please!" He whispered through his cries. Again, I was brought to a pause.

     What had happened that he suddenly believed his family hated him? I knew for a fact that Jack would be loyal forever and that you could never get rid of him. Madeline was much too motherly, and I knew Jasmine desperately cared for her little brother. That Samantha also seemed to care quite a bit also, as did that Tucker fellow. So for Daniel to suddenly assume that they hate him.... Someone was going to pay.

     I calmly tried to shush Daniel's hysteria, "It's alright, Daniel. It's okay. I won't take you there if you don't want to go. But you'll have to come with me because I can't leave you here." He gave a quivering nod into my chest. So I slowly lifted into the sky and flew in the direction of my mansion.

     Daniel's black hair swayed ever so slightly in the wind, and he started to calm at the feeling of flying. But his grip on my tunic was firm, and he clearly shook. Still, his breathing leveled, and I think he actually fell asleep in my arms.

     I lowered vertically into the guest room I had designated for Daniel's visits and placed Daniel on the queen-sized bed. I slid off his shoes and intangibly lifted the covers from under him. Then, I laid the blankets over him in a caring way, noticing the slight dampness of his shirt collar and burns on his arms. Yes, someone was going to pay.

     I brushed the hair out of Daniel's eyes and left the room carefully closing the door behind me. As I did, soft whimpers began to escape the boy. He was having a nightmare, most likely. Oh yes, someone was definitely going to pay DEARLY for whatever they had done. But first, I needed information.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     I had been so lost in my hysteria, I barely even noticed when I fell asleep, but the change was quite obvious when I recognized it was a nightmare. Everything was suddenly on fire, and He sat atop a tall throne.

     Now normally, I would never shy away from anyone. I mean, I'm shy, but not so shy that I can't even look at people. But right now? I backed away quietly with my eyes clamped shut.

     "Now, Danny," his voice sounded mocking, "you didn't really think I would just let you away that easily, did you? Look at me."

     "No," I growled. I kept backing away, my hands at the ready to defend myself, but my eyes fearfully closed.

     "I said, LOOK AT ME!" He yelled. He grabbed me by the collar of my shirt and lifted me to his eye level. With a startled gasp, my eyes opened and stared into his. "Good. Now take a nice, long look." He was torturing me. Why did I have to look at him? I already knew every feature by heart. It's not like I could look in the mirror without his face flashing in front of mine. But look I did, and it only intensified my terror.

     The white flames of his hair flickered in an imaginary wind. His cape billowed behind him in that same wind. His muscles were huge, proving how inhuman he really was. Sharp fangs protruded from his upper lip, and his blood red eyes bore into mine. His face was a sickly green, and his aura shimmered dimly.

       I had stared long enough to tell how much he was going to hurt me. I could read in his posture and his eyes. He hated me, I knew that, and he was going to hurt me and everyone I loved until I begged for the sweet release of death. But he could never give it, because that would eliminate him also. So he would wait until I had healed to destroy me again. It was how the cycle went.

     My breathing picked up in pace, and my heart started to beat out of my chest. He was holding me at least a foot above the ground, but I could feel his fiery breath on my face, so close were we. His lip curled up into a snarl, and he spit out his next words.

     He ordered, "Run, Danny. My fire power is hot enough to melt that icy core of yours, so I suggest you get going." The snarl turned into a menacing grin, and he dropped me. A whimper escaped my lips, and I turned tail and fled.

     So far, I hadn't seen any victims for him to try to kill, so I had no one to protect but myself. And he was toying with me, so I'd at least survive for an hour or so. There was always the option of just letting him kill me and ending the nightmare, but he'd always see right through it and say, "Now where's the fun in that? Let's play a real game." And then I'd be tortured until I awakened to the sound of my alarm clock.

     Also, I'm not even fifteen (plus I'm alone) so cut me some slack! I am allowed to be afraid. Every hero has a greatest fear. Mine is just having my humanity ripped away from me and becoming an evil, psychotic murderer ten years from now. Yeah, isn't that wonderful?

     Back in nightmare land, I was dodging flaming trees and fiery buildings. I was definitely in Amity Park, but there wasn't any blood or dead bodies, so maybe my dream-citizens evacuated? You know, so I couldn't be horrified by their maimed bodies and terrified screams? Although, my life is never that easy.

     I tried transforming into my ghost-form, only to be electrocuted. Right. I'm not allowed to use ghost powers here. He can just do whatever he wants, and I can't fight back. That's also wonderful.

     A natural portal suddenly opened in front of me, and I had no time to dodge. I barreled forward into the swirling green vortex and flew into the ghost zone. Surprisingly (not really, considering this is my subconscious), I recognized where I was. Unsurprisingly, I was suspicious and didn't make any movements. But despite the natural coldness of the ghost zone, the destructive heat flowed from the portal and urged me to move on before my core melted.

     Still, I took my time in studying my surroundings. Seemingly random gears floated about, and the ghost zone swirled in its eerie, glowing green. None of the common purple doors were anywhere nearby, but a few hundred yards ahead was a tall clock tower. No...it couldn't be! He wouldn't!

     "I would," the dark voice chuckled. I jolted and shot forward like a bullet. I had to know. Surely, Clockwork, the master of all time, could stop Him? Maybe I had finally found a safe haven?

     But I shouldn't have even let any hope emerge, because my life is just really, never, ever, EVER that easy.

     "Hello?" I called tentatively. He had to be here! I can't keep facing this alone! "Clockwork?" I moved through the mansion quickly, phasing through walls because in the ghost zone 'humans are the ghosts.' "Are you there?"

     I was an idiot! A fool! I had known what I would see, but I had continued on as if there was any hope for me! There never is! Why would I think that?!

     Oh, I had found Clockwork alright. In a messy puddle of his own ectoplasmic BLOOD. He had been stripped of his cloak and beloved staff. His internal clock had been smashed in, and his usually red eyes had faded to a dull gray. All of the other clocks in the room had been DESTROYED.

     I choked on a sob and moved towards him, only to be flung over his body with great force and crash into the wall behind him. I covered my head with my skinny arms and forced down tears.

     Any hope I had, and shining light in the darkness, had been completely shattered, much like the workings of Clockwork's chest. I didn't deserve to live. I deserved to die painfully, and slowly. I was a despicable person in the future, and the only way to stop me was to kill me. I HAD to die. And I deserved to die painfully.

     "Glad to see I've smothered all of that resistance," his deep voice teased with a smirk. He lifted his hand, and a green dome surrounded me. Confused, I touched the dome. Shockingly, it electrocuted me. Pun completely intended.

     "What are you doing?" I questioned sadly, hating the way my voice cracked with depression and self-loathing.

     "Making sure your spirit is broken," he sneered. A flash of light made me lift my eyes, and I gasped in emotional pain at what I saw. He was WEARING Clockwork's cloak. He was HOLDING Clockwork's staff.

     "You!...you!" I cried in outrage. I stood to my full height and clenched my fists. "You monster!"

     "What a lovely compliment!" He grinned. "And I thought you were humble."

     "I will never, ever be like you!" I yelled.

     "Oh, really? You can visit Ol' Clocky's tower and see me anytime, remember?" He taunted. "And by the way, his core was delicious."

     "You ATE it?!" I screamed. Tears poured from my eyes.

     "Yes, Danny. I pretty much ate Clockwork's heart. Now have fun as I have another feast. I'm quite peckish," he smirked, and I realized where the flash of light came from. In the corners of the room, stood Sam, Tucker, and Jazz. I clamped my hands over my mouth.

     "No. No! No!! NO! NO! NO NO NO!!!" He couldn't! "YOU CAN'T!"

     "Watch me." He approached Tucker. "You actually love him the least of the three, and I'm saving the best for last." Tucker looked up in a daze.

     "NO! TUCKER, YOU HAVE TO RUN!" I cried. The tears were flowing much faster now. I tried transforming into Phantom again, only to be electrocuted again. My back arched in agony, and a small scream escaped me. I stopped the transformation and panted.

     "If your done," He drawled. "You love Tucker most because of his amazing abilities. He impresses you like no one else." Pause for completely creepy effect. "So I'm taking that away."

     "NO!"

     "I'll start with his hands." And just like that, Tucker was already screaming in terror and agony as his hand were burned away.

     "TUCKER!"

     "DANNY!" With his cry, I pounded on the dome, not caring how much I was electrocuted. My body was trembling, and my heart beat even faster now. I was powerless! I could do nothing to stop it! But he still screamed for me.

     "And I'll remove his eyes."

     "STOP!" Tucker's screams ingrained themselves in my mind. I watched and screamed and punched and wailed as his eyes disappeared. Tucker collapsed to the floor in a sobbing heap.

     "I'M SO SORRY!" I apologized through my tears.

     "I HATE YOU!" He yelled back. Sobs wracked my body.

     "And then we move on to Jazz, who you only love slightly more," the monster drawled in boredom.

     "Please!" I begged.

     He ignored me and continued, "You love her for her intelligence and understanding. Both stem from her beautiful brain. Which I'm going to strip her of." My legs trembled, and I could barely see through my tears.

     Jazz was shaking like a leaf in a HURRICANE that way she was cowering in the corner. Tears flooded her eyes, but she still tried to placate the beast.

     "Danny, it's me, Jazz. I'm your sister! Please! Don't do this! I still love you!" She pleaded.

     "Still? What does that matter to me? I love no one," He hissed. And before anyone could blink, he snapped her neck, reached inside and ripped out her brain. I screamed louder and more terrified and hurried than ever before. He ripped out her BRAIN. He just...just RIPPED IT RIGHT OUT! HOW CAN ANYONE DO THAT?!

     I collapsed to my knees in a quivering heap. He wasn't going to stop now. No, because he just held up her brain, and ate half of it. And all I could do was watch. He threw the remaining part of her brain at the dome, and I watched in disgust as it splattered in a messy pile at the bottom.

     "P-PLEASE! STOP!" I begged. He sent a dirty snarl my way.

     "Pathetic." Then he moved to Sam.

     "N-no! No! You can't! P-please! That was enough! Leave her alone! P-please!" I whimpered.

     Again, he ignored me and leaned close into her face, sneering at the absolute terror plastered on her face. "You love Sam because of her undying care. The way she helps you and cracks jokes when you're sad. She tends to your wounds late at night and reassures you of a better future. She does all of this, from her heart." He stared down at her, and I noticed hesitance on his face. He didn't...didn't want to kill her. He still lover her! I still loved her! "I LOVE NO ONE!"

     And his hand was in her chest and he had ripped out her heart and it was still BEATING and he took a bite out of it and he wiped the blood on her face and he kicked her motionless body. All the while, I sobbed and begged with any higher power to kill me and hoped that I would wake up and wished that I had never set foot in that portal. The God forsaken portal. The portal that sent me to Hell.

     "Your turn."

 

-{[(•)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I do not know what caused me to write something like this. I feel like I can't apologize enough? There's a part of me that's just embarrassed, and then there's the part of me that's still in shock. Like, where did this even come from?
> 
> I think I originally wrote this when I first started struggling with depression, so that might have had some influence???
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: Have you had any nightmares? What's the kind of nightmare that freaks you out the most?


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea what happened. Until this point, the writing was fine, if disturbing. Starting from this point, the writing just kinda goes off the rails with drama and emotion. Vlad and Danny dip in and out of character; there's lots of crying; Vlad has no control of his anger.
> 
> I don't even know; I hope you can still enjoy.

-{[(•)]}-

 

     I woke up slowly, my eyes barely sliding open. I knew what I had to do now. I had to kill myself. It was the only way to prevent the future.

     I had never, once in my miserable existence ever, ever considered suicide. I had never cut or done any self harm. I never did drugs or drank alcohol or smoked. In fact, I'd never had sex either. I was one hundred percent pure by regular standards.

     But I knew now that that was a lie. I was the worst kind of sinner there was. I had willingly stepped into the portal. I had turned it on. I had unleashed all of the ghosts on the town. I had caused everyone so much grief. I was going to murder everyone. I wasn't just evil. I was probably worse than Satan himself.

     So I was going to kill myself. Here and now. In this fancy room. With whatever I could find. I would hang myself with the sheets from the bed, or stab myself with a piece of wood from the dresser. Somehow, I was going to commit suicide because I was the most vile, disgusting person on the face of the earth.

     I studied the room carefully for anything of actual use and noticed a glass cup. It was smashed on the floor in seconds, and I was in the corner with the largest, sharpest piece of glass. Bleeding out wasn't a painful enough way for me to die, considering how completely sickening the extent of my evil was, but it was efficient. It would get the job done.

     Using a tiny amount of ectoplasm, I made the glass able to kill my ghost half as well. I held the shard over my wrist and prepared to dice myself into pieces.

     But the tears stopped me as I started to apply pressure. I had tried to make up for my mistake. I had protected the town from every ghost so far, and I even helped with things I hadn't caused like robberies and fires.

     I hadn't meant to cause so much trouble. I was stupid and curious, and my one mistake had cost me everything. My parents, my sister, my friends, my grades, my social life, my future, and now my physical life.

     I had tried, Lord only knows I tried, to help everyone. I worked hard to improve my grades and follow the rules and not be late and come home before curfew. I tried to be good! I tried not to let my nightmares get the best of me, and I tried, I tried so DESPERATELY, to treat people with love and respect.

     All I received was hatred and resentment. So here I sat, a large shard of glass slicing into my wrist, unwilling to continue my life. Tears flooded my cheeks like a waterfall, and I'm sure my nose was running. My chest hurt still, and my arms burned, and I vaguely remembered that I was cutting my sprained wrist.

     "What are you doing?!" A low hiss invaded my darkening vision. A gasp escaped my lips as a gloved hand suddenly ripped the shard of glass away from me. A black glove. I could recognize that anywhere. It was HIM.

     I stared into his red eyes in terror. Something was wrong, I noticed. Yes, his eyes were red, and he had black gloves and a cape, and his face was an unnatural color, but it couldn't be HIM. This man's face shape was different and his hair was wrong.

     But this man was still very frightening, and I was in no position to fight him when he suddenly grabbed my wrists and pinned them above my head, forcing me to stand up at the same time.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I had assumed the boy had awoken when the whimpers and sobs ceased in the guest bedroom upstairs. A curious crashing sound brought me away from the morning newspaper, and I changed to my ghost form to see what all the commotion was. I was not expecting anything like I saw.

     Daniel was hunkered over in the corner. Glass was shattered across the floor, but he held the largest piece and was cutting himself furiously with it. He was sobbing again, and it tore my heart apart. But it mostly angered me. Who had caused him such grief that he must resort to attempted suicide?!

     "What are you doing?!" I hissed once I was in front of him. I snatched the glass from him and tossed it away. He stared up in me in a combination of shock and fear, mostly the latter. Although, his fear seemed to dissipate after a moment, but it was still present.

     In my angered haste for answers, I did something very foolish and cruel. I forced the boy up by pinning his wrists above his head. I shook him slightly, also frustrated by his lack of protest. He was still submissive!

     "Who?!" I demanded. He stared at me, newfound terror burrowing itself into his heart. "Who did this to you?! Who made you this way?!" When he didn't respond, I began to rattle him violently, expecting answers. Instead, I bashed him against the wall until his pained whimper finally snapped me out of my rage. I backed away at my return to reality.

     "Daniel, I-I..." I fumbled, trying to explain. "I'm sorry.... That was uncalled for... I didn't...didn't mean...." He wrapped his trembling hands around his shoulders, and his bangs fell into his eyes. He had collapsed on to his knees the moment I released him, and his shaky sobs of agony only intensified.

     "Little badger-" I whispered. "I'm so sorry. I'll just... I'll just leave you alone for now." And like that, I left. But I made sure to encase the shattered glass in my ecto-energy, and it trailed behind me as I left the room.

     Once the door was closed, a frustrated sigh escaped my lips. Well, that had been rather foolish. I hadn't meant to go that far. Really, my anger had gotten the best of me, but what was done was done.

     So I collected the glass shards and deposited them in the nearest available trash bin. I moved about and began to prepare breakfast, making sure to make a plate for the teen in my guest bedroom.

     Honestly, it worried me how many times Daniel only appeared to me when he needed help. He had already broken his legs and been diagnosed with a halfa illness. Now he was suffering attacks from a mysterious 'him.' It actually saddened me that he hadn't visited for any other reason, but it was to be expected. He was a teenage boy, and I was a full grown man. We couldn't be expected to be consistently affectionate towards each other.

     I paused in my cooking when I heard a frantic shout from upstairs. Something was wrong, and really, only one person could be involved. Daniel.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     "Little Badger-" the man whispered. I missed whatever else he said after that. Only one person called me that. Only one person teased me, yet also calmed me in such a way. How could I have not recognized Vlad Masters after all that we've been through together?

     I had been so lost in myself and my problems that I had completely ignored his identity, instead referring to him as 'the man.' He must hate me so much for not realizing! I'm such an idiot! And I'm so inconsiderate! I WAS GOING TO KILL MYSELF AND GET BLOOD ALL OVER HIS CARPET!!!

     He had left, but I'd probably do something stupid by the time he returned. I had to get out of here. There was no way I was forcing Vlad to clean up my mess. He might be the only person left who cared about me! And while part of me wanted to pull closer to him and tell him everything, the rest of me was afraid I would scare him away by doing that. No, I had to get away from him. I had to leave here.

     So I stood, ready to transform and fly dramatically from the window like Danielle. But no rings appeared, and in fact, I felt a sort of shock travel through my body. No. No! NO! THIS CANNOT BE HAPPENING!

     I gave a panicked cry. It was real! All of it was real! HE KILLED THEM!!!! HE ATE THEM!!!! THEY DIED AND I COULDN'T STOP HIM!!!! I CAN'T TRANSFORM! I CAN'T SEE FOR CERTAIN!!! THIS COULD NOT BE HAPPENING!!!!!

     I retreated under the bed when I heard Vlad outside the door. I covered my head with my arms and tried to turn invisible. Another electric shock traveled through me, but I disappeared from the plane of visibility.

     "Daniel?" He called. "Little one? Are you there?" He had to be mad. Both angry and insane. I'M A MURDERER FOR PETE'S SAKE! AND I ALMOST RUINED HIS FANCY CARPET!

     "Little badger?" His shiny polished shoes moved across the room. He checked the bathroom and the walk-in closet. I think he even checked the dresser. Finally he though to look under the bed, but I knew that he couldn't see me. Frighteningly, the shocking was increasing for every second I used my invisibility. Vlad dropped the side of the bed skirt and stood again.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I was worried beyond what you might think. I had checked the adjacent bathroom, the enormous closet, even the dresser, for Daniel, but he was still no where to be seen. Had he succeeded in killing himself? But where was the body? Had he faded from existence?

     I thought to check under the bed, but I could see nothing. I anxiously let the bed skirt fall and rose to my full height. I let my eyes scan over the room once again, but still, I found nothing. No, precious, emotionally-unstable little badger.

     "Snicker doodles, Daniel! This isn't a game!" I declared in frustration. Where could he be? Had he left? Was he just invisible?

     A small shift in the bed skirt alerted me to someone's uncomfortable presence. Oh, so he had been under there. I slowly lowered to my knees and lifted the cloth again.

     "Daniel?" I questioned as softly as possible. With a near-silent cry of pain, he flickered in my plane of sight. I gave a huge breath of relief and reached for him. Soon, he was in my arms, sharing a tight embrace with me. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!" He waited patiently for me to release him before he leaned back and sat on the floor in front of me.

     "Something's wrong," he admitted quietly.

     "So I gathered," I nodded. He wiped his eyes nervously and began to shake ever so slightly.

     "I can't change into Phantom. I-I get shocked every time I try, and m-my powers have a similar result. I-I could barely even turn invisible," he explained worriedly. I bit my lower lip. Well, that was not good.

     "I'm sorry, Daniel. I cannot give you a reason at to why that may occur, but I can offer you some breakfast. Would you like some? I made it myself," I suggested. He scooted away and shook his head. "Come now, you must be hungry." He shook his head again. "Daniel," I warned.

     "I'm f-fine," he argued.

     "No. You're not," I growled. "You are going to eat something." At that, I lunged as scooped him up in my arms, bridal style again.

     "V-Vlad!" He protested. Good, an improvement. "I can walk you know!"

     "Just like you can escape," I smirked. He stared up at me for a moment. Then he fiddled with the hem of his shirt and stared at his lap.

     "I'm sorry for hiding and making you worry. I shouldn't have."

     "It's quiet alright, Daniel. You're just going through a rough patch with your emotions. It could be a form of ghostly puberty. Who knows?" I shrugged slightly. He sighed and studied the decorations in the hall.

     I noticed he was extremely light. He was much skinnier than when we last met as well. How much was he eating? Probably not much, considering he weighed about as much as a feather in my powerful grasp. In this state, I could easily over-power him, ghost powers or not.

     "Are you mad at me?" He asked.

     "What?!" I yelped, caught off guard.

     "For almost bleeding out and ruining your nice carpet and stuff. Are you mad?" He clarified. I stared down at him with an eyebrow raised.

     "I-" I stopped myself. How do you even respond to something like that? "Why on earth were you worried about my carpet, Daniel? It's not like I can't buy new carpet. I'm more upset about whoever's been torturing you. You are irreplaceable, and I'd hate to have you kill yourself."

     "I guess I won't then," he decided.

     "Then tell me something," I requested. "Who has been making you so upset?" He blinked up at me. His eyebrows furrowed, and he squirmed.

     "I...I don't want to talk about it," he whispered and looked away again.

     A weight settled in the pit of my stomach. Someone was hurting Daniel, and he wouldn't tell me who it was. Were they forcing him not to tell? Was he afraid to tell? Why couldn't he just...TELL me?

     We arrived at the kitchen, and I set Daniel down at the table. I brought him some of the breakfast that I had prepared. He stared down at it hungrily and lifted his fork to eat.

     "It's rude to stare, you know," he stated without looking up.

     "Oh. Right," I agreed. Why had I been watching him eat? "I have some things to attend to. So please eat as much as you'd like. I'll be back soon, though." I left as soon as he nodded.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     The food smelled delicious, and I really wanted to eat it, but something was bugging me. HE had heat powers, and Vlad had heat powers, so is that were they came from? Was the fiery demise of everyone actually Vlad's fault? Because I had an ice core. So I couldn't wield fire. So it was Vlad's fault that I was chased by fire in my nightmares. Didn't that mean I should be afraid of Vlad? But he was being so nice! Still, he could seriously damage my core or cripple me right now if he wanted to.

     I hadn't even realized that I had turned away from the doorway until Vlad stepped through it. His polished shoes clacked to a stop a few steps away from the table. I could sense his intense gaze on my back.

     "You didn't touch your food," he observed. A touch of angry accusation colored his voice.

     "I'm not hungry," I insisted.

     "You need to eat," he argued. "Look at me." I tensed at his words. Those words..... They were exactly the same as HIS....

     "I'm fine," I persisted. Would he say the next part too? Did that also originate from Vlad and make it to HIM?

     "I said, look at me!" He barked. I bolted before I could think properly and phased through him, despite the shock that came with it. The intangibility held, if painfully, and I sprinted through walls until I came to a dark hallway. I lunged for the nearest door. My ice powers shot through the doorknob, freezing it. But the electric shock from using my powers wasn't worth it.

     My body ached, and I clutched at my rapidly beating heart. Why did Vlad have to use those words, those exact words? Why? Did he know? He asked about it earlier though... Was he trying to confuse me? Frighten me? What was his plan?

     A few confused tears escaped my eyelashes. I was getting pretty flustered. I should have just stayed there! But he said those words...and it reminded me exactly of HIM...and I just-I just panicked, okay?! Cut a guy some slack!

     "LITTLE BADGER!" Vlad's concerned yells rang throughout the house. "DANIEL, WHERE ARE YOU?"

     "I'm sorry. I d-don't know what happened.... I'm so, so sorry," I apologized quietly. I slipped down to my knees. I was totally disrespecting him, and I deserved whatever came to me, I guess. That is, until he started to get mad. Vlad can be a scary guy when he's mad.

     "DANIEL!" He sounded pretty angry. Maybe I should come out now? "LITTLE BADGER, COME OUT!" Why was he getting so angry?

     I noticed that it was getting slightly warmer by the minute. His anger was making the temperature increase.... If he got too upset, it might get hot enough to damage my core!

     "DANIEL JAMES FENTON!" Oh, he was mad now. If I didn't do something.... But this was all too familiar.... I don't know if I can face him...

     "THIS ISN'T FUNNY!"

     "I'LL FIND YOU!" Yes, all too familiar.

     "DANIEL, GET OUT HERE!" I realized that now might be a good time to make my reappearance. I quietly stood and wiped away my fearful tears. I was going to have to try to make him calm down. I reached for the doorknob and turned. It was stuck.

     "DANIEL, I'M NOT HAPPY!" Maybe I turned it the wrong way. Some people have those funny doorknobs that do that; you have to turn them the other way. I twisted the doorknob in the opposite direction. Still nothing.

     "I'M TELLING YOU TO COME OUT!" It looked like a pull door, but maybe it pushed out. You never know- oh, no, the doorknob's just stuck. That's absolutely fantastic. Just my luck- oh, that's right! My ice core reacted in my panic to get away. The first thing I touched was the doorknob, so it must have frozen. Great...

     "DANIEL!!" He was screaming now. Crap! I need to get out there! He's freaking out, and if he doesn't find me soon, well... Let's just not think about that. I'm scared enough as it is.

     "COME OUT!" I finally thought to phase through the wall. Gathering my energy, I turned intangible and stepped... Only to crash into a solid surface. The walls were ghost-proof.

     "GET OUT HERE!" Why?! Why did he ghost-proof this random closet?! There's not even anything in it! It's completely empty!!!!!

     "DANIEL!"

     "Vlad!" I called as loudly as I could. Somehow, as if the universe hates me (which it does, I have proof), my voice came out no louder than when I talk normally, but I still felt strained. When had I last drank any water? The glass Vlad left for me got smashed for my suicide attempt, and I couldn't even remember the last time I drank ANYTHING. Well, frig.

    "THIS ISN'T A GAME, BOY!" He was really mad. The temperature was still rising, but it wasn't enough to unfreeze the doorknob.

     "I know!" I cried hoarsely. No no no no no no no! I CANNOT loose my voice right now!!!

     "THERE'S GOING TO BE TROUBLE WHEN I FIND YOU!"

     "So I gathered! Come on! Come on!" I muttered, tugging at the doorknob. I was too weak to summon an ecto-blast and destroy the knob. So I settled for pounding on the door. "Vlad! Dang it, I'm trapped, Vlad!"

     "YOU LITTLE RAT, FACE ME!" He sounded even farther away. No! I can't yell loud enough for him to hear me! There's no way I'm making it out of this alive!!!!!

     I felt my eyes get watery again. This cannot be happening! WHY?! WHY DOES THE UNIVERSE HATE ME!!!!!

     I fell to my knees and persisted in hitting the door as hard as I could. Suddenly, the heat increased a lot-still not enough to melt the ice in the lock, but enough to damage my core.

     "I'LL FORCE YOU OUT! I FEEL EVEN STRONGER IN THIS HEAT!!!!!" So he was the source.

     "Vlad! Stop! I can't-" my voice cracked. I grabbed my throat and choked on air. "I c-can't-" my voice was much quieter now. "V-Vlad-" Tears raced down my cheeks. I was going to die. I was really going to die. And at the hands of the only person who cared about me.

     I tried summoning more ice to defend myself from the heat, but the thin layers melted quickly. I choked on another sob. I curled up on my side and attempted to hit the door somewhat loudly. But I could practically feel the heat draining my energy.

     "DANIEL!" He sounded more concerned now. And closer. I felt like I was slapping the door now. My eyelids started to flutter closed.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     "DANIEL!" I was starting to get extremely worried. What was I doing?! Increasing the heat like that!!! In his state, it could kill him!!!!!

     I lowered my own body heat and rushed to turn the air conditioner on full blast. Once the mansion started to cool, I hurried to find him. He could be dead by now!!!! AND I WOULD HAVE KILLED HIM!!!!

     "DANNY! PLEASE!" A faint noise caught my attention, and I rushed towards it. I was led to a dark hallway in one of the most secluded places in the mansion. Shocked, I turned in circles to find the noise again.

     "Daniel?" I questioned. A cough and soft pounding sounded from a door to my right. I surged forward. "Daniel, are you alright?" No reply. "Daniel?" Frightened by his lack of response, I grabbed the doorknob and tried to open the door. It was stuck tight. Now, I knew for a fact that this wasn't one of those weird knobs, and the door didn't open in the opposite direction..... Had he been trapped in the closet the entire time?!

     I could go on and on about how dangerous that was, especially because small spaces tend to have higher temperatures, but I needed to get Daniel out of there swiftly.

     "Daniel, why is the knob stuck?" Again, I received no response. "Daniel, are you even there?" Shallow breaths increased in volume. Alright. "Hold on, I'm going to blast the door open."

     I stepped back and lifted a gloved hand, having transformed in my ghost half as soon as Daniel had disappeared from my sight. Magenta lighted the hallway as the ecto-ray advanced toward the shiny knob. A loud 'bang' resounded through the surrounding area. I floated forward cautiously as the door swung open.

     "Daniel?" He was curled on the floor, facing away from the door and clutching his chest. "Are you hurt?" He coughed lightly and rolled to face me. A relieved breath burst from me and I quickly knelt, scooped him up and checked over him.

     The burns on his arms and cuts on his wrists weren't healing, but nothing seemed to be wrong with his core other than the previous. Something could be wrong with his voice box. Other than that, he appeared fine.

     "Daniel, I-" I was going to apologize, but I noticed something. "Daniel, you're trembling."

     "I'm-m s-s-so-sor-sorry," he rasped. My eyes widened.

     "Oh my boy, I overreacted! You have no reason to be sorry. Come now, don't be so ridiculous, and let's get you some water. Your voice sounds dreadful," I offered. He nodded quietly. I set him down and rose to my feet. He stood on his own, but he fell again and clutched his core.

     "Daniel!" I scooped him up again and flew to the kitchen as rapidly as possible, depositing him at the table in milliseconds. I grabbed a glass from the nearest cabinet and filled it with tap water. I handed it to him, and he drank it slowly. "Are you okay?!"

     "I'm fine," he answered quietly. "C-can I eat something?" I blinked.

     "Of course?" I replied in confusion. Why would it NOT be okay for him to eat?

     "Great." He grabbed the plate from the table and shakily stood.

     "What are you doing?!" I yelled. He cringed.

     "Well, I was going to heat this up. It has to cold by now-" he trailed off and stared at the plate hungrily.

     "Can you even walk?!" I questioned.

     "Vlad," he rolled his eyes. "My core just needed a little boost. That water did the trick." I nodded slowly, understanding his argument. He moved to the microwave and waited a minute or so for his breakfast to reheat. Then he leaned against the counter with the plate in one hand and his fork in the other.

    "Aren't you going to sit at the table?" I asked. He sighed and hung his head.

     "Sure. Will you stop picking at me?" He inquired.

     "It's my house." He tensed at that.

     "Yeah, sorry-"

     "Don't be. Just eat. You'll be fine. If I leave, will you bolt when I come back?" It was a simple question, but he almost dropped his plate because he started shaking so badly.

     "I'm s-sorry."

     "Daniel," I reached to place my hand on his shoulder. He flinched away, and I placed my hand back at my side. "Just try to enjoy it." I changed back to my human half, folded my hands behind my back, and left the room. "Oh, and I won't carry you back to your room."

     "I said I was sorry!"

 

-{[(D)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Geeze Louise
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: What kind of bread do you like? I'm really craving like carrot or zucchini bread; or ooh! Maybe pistachio bread!!!


	5. Chapter 5

-{[(D)]}-

 

     I thought while I ate. I was sorry, and I had said so more than once, but I think I still upset Vlad. I just can't please anyone, can I? Do I even have to please Vlad? Isn't our relationship already ruined? He must really hate me... Why am I always such a SCREWUP?!

     After the plate was finished, I rinsed it and placed it in the empty dishwasher. Then I tried to find my way through the mansion and back to the guest room. Using my memory of directions, I accomplished my goal, but I didn't feel satisfied.

     I was being such a burden on Vlad with all of my problems. Either, I need a fix for my issues, or I needed to leave. And I wasn't sure how to accomplish either one. Also, I smelt terrible.

     To remedy that problem, I decided to utilize the shower in the bathroom. I let cold water run over me, reenergizing my core. In fact, I felt like I could run a marathon! Then I scrubbed the shampoo into my hair and let it rinse away. I washed my body, before I conditioned my hair. Next, I just sat down on the floor of the shower and let the water pelt my face.

     My core reacted to the water just like I wanted it to. The dull, throbbing pain in my wrist began to fade away. The cuts on my wrists started to close, and the burns on my arms started to heal. The pain in my chest almost seemed to drift away and swirl down the drain with the cold water.

     Just to see if I could, I try transforming. Don't ever mix water and electricity, kids; the result is terrible. Luckily, I was able to hold back a scream and settle for a small shout. My body flopped down onto the floor of the bathtub, and I found myself actually laughing when Vlad appeared outside the door.

     "Daniel?! Daniel, are you alright?!" I just laughed some more. I wasn't going to tell him what actually happened, but my lie would seem perfectly realistic.

     "I slipped. I totally just slipped in the shower. This is just...just embarrassing-" I couldn't hold back more laughter as it poured out of me. Vlad's deep chuckle accompanied it.

     "Carry on, then." And I just laughed and laughed some more.

     Eventually, I crawled out of the shower and turned the water off. Yeah, I probably going insane, but at least I have the COMFIEST towel in the WORLD wrapped around my waist and a clean body, good food in my belly and a happy ice core.

     My clothes felt dirty when I put them on, so I checked inside the walk in closet. Sure enough, I found something I wouldn't mind wearing. An extra baggy, grey sweatshirt and black sweatpants.

     And that's how I crawled into bed. I molded the pillows around my body like a fort and laughed happily for the second time in who knows how long. I was acting like an idiot! But I didn't care! I just built a pillow fort and now I'm gonna take a nap. SCREW CONSEQUENCES!!!!! THEY'RE FOR WUSSES!!! I AIN'T NO WUSS! (Insert insane laughter here.)

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I waited until over an hour after the shower had turned off before I let myself into Daniel's room. He was sprawled out across the comforter like a toddler, including the drool. Pillows formed a structure around him, that I assumed must have been made to resemble a fort. Someday I'll have to teach him some things because the way that looked... Well, let's say he'll never get a job as an architect.

     I chuckled lightly and pulled a chair next to him. If this turned into another nightmare, I intend on being by his side to awaken him. As if to confirm my thoughts, Danny shifted and his eyebrows furrowed together.

     "No," he breathed. And so it begins.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     After first, I just saw darkness. Everything faded into view after a while, making me feel rested before the nightmare could begin. Why was he letting me gather my energy? Was my happiness pushing him away?

     Anyway, I found myself in a large field, standing on a rectangular patch of dirt. The long grass around the island of dirt was on fire. The sky was a dull amber, and ashes wafted around. My hair fluttered around in a slight wind, and I recognized the setting sun in the distance.

     "Face me!" I yelled. I attempted to transform, surprised when I actually did so. He was giving me my powers.... What was he playing?

     "Confused, are we?" He taunted, materializing at the opposite end of the dirt patch.

     "Ready to fight, more like," I retorted smugly. Forget it, I'm not going to cower anymore. Vlad's been too kind to me for me to just forget why I fight and hide like a little girl. I'm a hero, gosh darn it! And it's high time I start acting like it!

      "I thought you might feel that way. That's why I thought you might stop when you see this-" a gesture of his hand and he was suddenly atop a flat wooden stage. Another green dome appeared around me.

     "What are you doing?" I demanded. He smirked and waved his hand in a quick circle.

     "Wha- Daniel?" Vlad muttered as he appeared. A strangely familiar bracelet was tight around his wrist. At the same time, metallic gloves were pulled on to HIS hands.

     "No," I gasped. This cannot be happening. "NO! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Ecto-energy powered up in my hands, and I was blasting away at HIM from inside the dome. The blasts bounced off of the dome and ricocheted around until the energy dissipated. I dodged and tried again with ice attacks. At first the dome froze, but the fire nearby melted the ice.

     "Danny, Danny! I didn't even do anything-" he paused to smirk, "-yet."

     "And I won't give you that chance!" I shouted. I began my assault on the dome at the same time HE started his attack on Vlad.

     "I won't let you hurt either of us," Vlad growled. He tried to transform, but as soon at the rings appeared, he screamed, and electricity bounced around him visibly.

     "Vlad!" My attacks grew stronger with my panic. HE launched himself high into the sky before accelerating back down fist-first and pounding Vlad into the dirt. I cried out and attacked the dome even harder. HE pulled himself out of the crater created by the impact and kicked Vlad while he was dazed.

     "You see, Danny-" a punch to Vlad's face "-I get pretty lonely for a guy with no emotions-" HE dodged Vlad's swing "-so I thought, heck! Why not just MAKE myself a friend!" HE kicked Vlad again and kneed his face.

     "You can't make friends!" I cried. "You earn them, and you're not getting any brownie points, there, you murderer!"

     "Tsk, tsk, Danny! You should know by now that the only person I like is myself!" He shook his head and dodged Vlad's sloppy attack.

     "How humble," I sneered and tried to blast the dome again. The blast hit the wall and shot right back at me. I quickly dodged to the right, only for it to hit the dome behind me and bounce back into my back. Simultaneously, HE and I cried out in pain.

     "Idiot!" He hissed. "We're connected!"

     "I kinda figured that out!" I growled. He dodged another attack and punched Vlad again.

     "As I was SAYING-" he glared at me "-I thought that a little mini-me would be cute. Except, the only way to make a mini-ME is to rip out yours and Vlad's ghost halves. Of course, I won't be needing the human halves after that-" the claws finally ejected out of his gloves.

     "NO!" I screamed as loudly as I could.

     "Daniel," a faint voice called from somewhere.

     Vlad was down for the count now, so HE just sauntered right over. The claws dug into Vlad's chest, and before I could say anything else, Plasmius hovered over Masters.

     "NO!" I whimpered. HE-HE can't! He just- I- but!!! NO! I can't let Vlad die! Not like this! NOT LIKE THIS!!!!!

     I launched myself at the dome just as the green began to fade away. Suddenly, my powers shorted and I reverted to my human form. NO! NOT RIGHT NOW!

      "Vlad!" I ran as fast I could. But HE lifted the human body into the air and tossed him towards the flames. My eyes widened, but I kept running.

     "Fool! You'll kill us both!" HE shouted and lunged to stop me.

     "Good," I muttered.

     "I'LL RIP YOUR GHOST HALF RIGHT OUT OF YOU AND FORCE IT TO WATCH ME TEAR YOU TO PIECES!!!!!" He roared. At that, I turned and whimpered slightly, but still kept running. Vlad's scream of agony caught my attention.

     "It's not real; it's just a dream. It's not real; it's just a dream!" I whispered like a mantra.

     "Daniel!" The voice was more urgent now, but I ignored it.

     "BELIEVE ALL YOU WANT, HERO!" HE screamed. I stepped backwards away from Him, only to realize that I was at the edge of the dirt patch already. The heat was intense, and I could feel my core draining again. But HE was approaching with those gloves too quickly for me to care. I quickly dropped and curled into the fetal position, lanky arms trying to defend my head.

     "No, please, no-" HE was suddenly right above me.

     "Say goodbye," he sneered.

     "DANIEL!"

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     I gasped and sat upright, already sobbing. The only person I had left- I thought I had Clockwork, and Tucker, and Sam, and Jazz, but they didn't love me anymore. The only person I had left- Vlad. And he was ripped away from me and destroyed with what he controlled. Fire.

     My face was buried in my hands in seconds, and I was practically screaming with my sobs. Vlad made sure I was fed. He made sure I was comfortable and happy. He did more than any of my so-called loved ones recently. My parents haven't noticed me for days. Jazz hasn't talked to me. I hadn't seen Sam and Tucker in what felt like forever.

     No one bothered to check on me anymore. To make sure I was fed and bathed and well. No, they just locked me in my room and told me to be good. They worried more about my homework than my well being.

     Suddenly, the most wonderful, yet terrifying thing happened- Vlad was there with his arms around me, shushing me and trying to sooth my worries. At first, it was truly comforting. He wasn't dead. But then that pesky 'yet' rang through my head, and I realized, he was hugging ME. ME! And I become HIM. His MURDERER. Oh gosh- I can't take this! I'm going to-

     I leapt from Vlad's arms and darted into the bathroom, puking anything I had stomached into the fancy toilet. Vlad followed me. He rubbed my back and held my bangs out of my face.

     When I finished vomiting, I did what most teens my age would do. I cried harder. And mostly because, even when I was throwing up, Vlad still helped me and tried to make me feel better.

     I didn't care if my mouth tasted worse than Dash's underwear. I didn't care if I was trembling like a leaf, or if my tears were swallowing my face. I needed to apologize, because even if it was a dream, I just murdered Vlad Masters, and he? He is a good man.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     He didn't whimper or say anything for a good ten minutes, but I was glad that I had waited, because his nightmare escalated from there.

     "No," he whimpered softly. He shifted again. His feet twitched and his shoulder wiggled.

     "Daniel," I tried to awaken him softly. He showed no signs of recognition.

     "No!" That was a bit louder. His eyes squeezed even tighter shut, and his eyebrows moved closer together. "Vlad!" He was afraid now, expressing by his increase in movement and his eyebrows abruptly shooting into his hairline. Was he calling out for me in his sleep? Or was I part of the nightmare? He whimpered again.

     "It's not real; it's just a dream. It's not real; it's just a dream-" he muttered nervously. So he knew it was a dream, but it must be an extreme nightmare if he had to convince himself not to be afraid.

     "Daniel!" I pleaded, begging him to wake up. I couldn't let him go through this kind of torture, even on a subconscious level.

     Quickly, he curled into a ball and wrapped his arms around his head in a defensive position. I jolted. What was he defending himself from?

     "No, please, no-" he whispered. His face appeared terrified. I had to wake him up now. I don't care about the repercussions. He had to wake up.

     "DANIEL!" I cried. He gasped and jolted, suddenly sitting up. Sobs broke through his lips, and he muffled them with his hands. Nervous about his frightened behavior, I wrapped my arms around his trembling frame and tried to allay his fears.

     "It's okay; you're safe now. I'm here. I won't let anything hurt you. You're going to be just fine-" I paused to shush him as his breathing picked up "-everything's going to be alright. You're safe-"

     He abruptly burst away and sprinted into the bathroom. The sounds of his puking drifted through the open doorway. I rushed after him. Was he sick? Were his hormones out of balance? What was the cause of his sudden illness?

     With my left hand, I rubbed circles in his back, surprised at the tense knots just below the surface. Using my right hand, I lifted his bangs away so he didn't get any vomit in them.

     Unsure of what else to do, I tried to ease his lingering discomforts with, "It's okay. You're okay. Everything's okay. I'm okay. We're okay. All is okay. It's okay." Frankly, I hate the word 'okay.' It really is very indescript, and I just don't understand it sometimes. But it seemed to ease Daniel a bit, so I persisted until he stopped retching and turned up to me with misty eyes.

     In mere moments, he was sobbing into my chest again, murmuring weepy apologies. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so so sorry! Please don't hate me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm so, so, so sorry! I'm really sorry! Don't be mad! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

     "Daniel!" I gasped. What on earth-?! What did he have to be sorry for? We already ceased our disputes, and he apologized for our previous disagreeable engagements. Now, what else could he possibly be upset about?! We had resolved the possible issue with the carpet, and I had made it clear in the past that he was always welcome here and could never be a burden. Why, even Tucker and Samantha were welcomed if they so chose, not that they'd ever come to me, but still!

     "I'm sorry! I tried! I tried so hard! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Another clue. Tried hard to do what? Be perfect? I knew that he attempted that often, but could he possibly mean that now? It was unlikely. "I couldn't stop Him! I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry! I tried! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Stop who? From doing what? Did this have to do with his nightmare? Was this person even real? Why did he believe I had anything to do with this 'Him?' "And He just- He just-"

     Daniel brought his hands up to muffle his sobs again and scooted away. The quiet apologizes continued, but I was unable to move in my shock.

     "Who?" I questioned. His shoulders shook more than an earthquake, and his hands trembled over his mouth. He kept his eyes to the ground and kept moving away until he pressed up in the corner between the cabinet and the toilet.

     "I'm really, very, so, so sorry," he finished and wiped his eyes, but he remained where he was.

     "Daniel, you have yet to tell me what for. Honestly, I just can't be upset with you right now. Would you like something to eat?" I offered.

     "Y-yes," he nodded.

     "What would you like?" I asked.

     "Anything is fine, really," he replied, refusing to meet my gaze.

     "Alright, I'll be back momentarily," I informed and exited the room.

 

-{[(D)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: What would you say your favorite chips are? I must be hungry; I want some cheetos...


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my mind, this is the worst chapter as far as writing. This has the non-con scene, as well as some really bad jokes.

-{[(D)]}-

 

     I wasn't sure why I felt so apprehensive suddenly. I had just apologized about a HUNDRED times, but I guess- Well, he didn't ask directly, but he wanted to know WHY I was apologizing, and I don't know if I'm ready to tell ANYONE that! I haven't even told my sister, who I'm probably closest to. Besides, what if Vlad thought I was crazy? Or ridiculous? Would he kick me out? Was it really worth telling him?

 

"TIME OUT."

 

     Something of great weight slipped around my neck, and I recognized the ecto-energy as that of Clockwork. I turned my head to face him, and he just smiled sadly. What?! Clockwork doesn't show his emotions! Why- why would he just do that?!

     "Danny, I know you're confused, but really-" he chuckled a bit, "-no one hates you at all. Samantha and Tucker were just very, very tired! Jazz had a long day at school, too. Actually, Paulina broke up with Dash, causing his violent behavior. And Maddie and Jack are just worried for you. They don't know how to approach you and ask you what's been going on."

     "Oh," I blinked. Really? Was I that much of a drama-queen?

     "And I came here-" his face darkened, "-I came because darker times are coming. I know that you're only a teenager, and you ARE allowed to be afraid, but you must not let that fear control you. Take control of the situation. A true hero is know for facing his fears."

     "Clockwork, what's going to happen to me?" I inquired.

     "Nothing too serious," he assured. A small smile graced his lips. "Well, I don't think that some of it is too serious." Crap, he thought something was funny. Oh gosh, something terrible is going to happen. Oh my gosh!!!

     "And the rest of it?" I asked.

     "Nothing you can't handle. You'll be FINE. Just let Vlad do what he will, and do try to keep a grip on your fear, hmm?" He purred. Just like Vlad. He did that little humming thing at the end of his sentence. WAS HE TRYING TO FREAK ME OUT?! "Now come here."

     I stood slowly and approached him. He swiped invisible dust off of my shoulders and wiped tears off of my face. Then he tilted my head up and slowly wrapped his arms around my shoulder in a sort of hug.

     "Whoa-" I gasped.

     "What?" He smirked.

     "Dude, you're HUGGING me. Clockwork, the macho master of time, is hugging ME! I feel so accomplished!" I cheered.

     "Macho?" He teased. I nodded with a mischievous smile. He laughed and squeezed my shoulder. "I'll see you soon."

     "Okay," I chuckled. He moved away from me and bowed tauntingly.

     "Sir Phantom." I followed the gesture and bowed even lower.

     "Master Clockwork."

     "Master Clockwork? You know, I like that. I'll introduce myself that way from now on," he grinned.

     "No!" I laughed.

     "Yes!" We laughed for a moment. "Goodbye, Danny."

     "Yeah, whatever! Just leave me to fend for myself! I see how it is!" I joked. He rolled his eyes.

     "You have Vlad. He's very capable you know. Anyway, see you soon-"

 

"TIME IN."

 

     And like that, the time medallion was gone, and so was the time master that it belonged to. I shook my head and laughed just a tiny bit before Clockwork's warning hit me again. I sighed and sat at the end of the bed, waiting for Vlad. He appeared moments later with a hot bowl of soup.

     "Little one?" He caught my attention. He passed me the soup and sat next to me.

     "Why do you call me that?" I questioned before eating a bite.

     "Well, there are only two true halfas-" he started.

     "Danielle," I reminded and took another bite.

     "Yes, yes. Well, there are only two halfas born naturally," he rephrased to which I rolled my eyes. "You are the younger of us, and the smaller."

     "Are you insulting my height?" I asked.

     "I'm stating the obvious," he rolled his eyes. I chuckled quietly and ate some more soup. It was warm, but not hot, and tasted good, yet simple. It was like everything and nothing all at once. I felt my eyelids get heavy, and a drowsy yawn escaped my lips.

     "I want to have more moments like this," I stated sleepily. The bowl was empty anyway, so I set it on the nightstand and crawled into bed.

     "These times are nice," Vlad agreed.

     "Gosh, Vlad. Don't be so formal. I'll see you soon," I smiled through another yawn.

     "Yes, goodnight, little one," he teased. My eyelids fluttered closed just as Vlad phased through the door.

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     My first thought was: It's dark.

     My second was: DUCK!

     I lunged to the side as a magenta blast exploded and flew rapidly towards where I had been standing. I spun on my heel in search of the source. Growing aggravated, a green glow ignited in my own hand to lighten the room. Strangely, I was in the front room of Fenton Works, and it was a mess! The furniture was destroyed, and the walls were littered with scorch marks. Cobwebs spread from the corners, and dust covered every available surface. It smelled oddly of rotten eggs and gym socks, and it was very quiet.

     Not so strangely, Vlad floated in front of me in his ghost form. My shoulders slouched with relief and I heaved a great sigh.

     "It's you," I observed.

     "Who else would it be, little one?" He teased, but something was off about his voice. A blue wisp forced itself out of my mouth. Quickly, I lunged in front of Vlad, preparing to fight and face my fears. I was a hero after all, and a true hero is known for facing his fears.

     "There's really no need for that," HE stated with a roll of his eyes as he appeared. A small growl escaped me, and my knees steadied into a fighting stance.

     "Daniel," Vlad called. "Everything's fine. A deal has been made."

     "A deal?" I questioned and glanced between the two of them.

     "Yes, well, I already have you stored away in that guest bedroom back out there. All it takes is for me to activate the ghost shield, completely trapping you, and kill Jack. Then, Maddie will be mine, and Jasmine can be the daughter I never had," he explained with a wave of his hand.

     "No," I shook my head. "You gave that up. You told me. You're really working on forgiving my dad and settling for befriending my mom."

     "Don't you see, little badger? This is the future of Fenton Works. This is what it will look like when Jack is gone, and it's been deserted in favor of your family coming to me," Vlad gestured to the surrounding room.

     "You're not even real! Vlad's actually being a nice guy, so lay off!" I yelled.

     "He's only teasing, Danny! Don't take things so seriously," HE taunted. I gaped. He was evil, and he was turning Vlad evil in my dreams too, trying to turn me against him again!

     "I see what you're doing, and it isn't going to work. Vlad cares about me, and I care about him back. Besides, my mom would never live with you. She can stand just fine on her own, and Jazz will be off to college soon, so you're not getting either," I argued. "And as soon as I wake up, I'm going to thank Vlad about a hundred times more for being the best guy ever."

     "And what-" Vlad breathed in my ear, "-will happen if you don't wake up." Shivers raced across my skin.

     "Who's going to stop me?" I retorted bravely.

     "Well, I can stop half of you from getting up," he answered smoothly, producing a pair of metallic gloves from behind his back. Despite my resolution to face my fears, I took a step back and gulped.

     "You can't. It's my subconscious, my dreams. I don't believe Vlad is evil, so I want you to stop being a jerk and act like the real Vlad," I demanded.

    "But you see, I'm NOT the real Vlad. I'm only a figment of your imagination, and I AM a jerk," he smirked. The claws ejected out of the gloves.

     "No. N-no, Vlad stop. You're not real. None of this is real. You don't have t-to...t-to," I couldn't finish the sentence as tears gathered in my eyes.

     "Just comply calmly, little badger," he insisted.

     "Don't CALL me that! You have NO right!" I yelled.

     "I have EVERY right! Now just TRANSFORM!" He ordered.

     "NO! LEAVE ME ALONE!" I shouted. Strong, muscular arms pinned my wrists behind my back like handcuffs.

     "Danny, Danny-" HE breathed. "You know as well as I that that isn't going to happen." Before I could scream for the real Vlad to wake me up, HE cupped a hand over my mouth.

     "And if you didn't see this coming-" Vlad declared with a roll of his eyes and wave of his gloved hand, "Say goodbye to Phantom, Daniel." The gloves raised above my head. In a last moment effort, I kicked backwards at where the sun does not shine on any decent man. HE gasped and fell backwards. Vlad swung, and I leapt to the side to dodge his attack.

     "I think I'm going to stay with him for a while longer, thank you very much!" I exclaimed triumphantly and hit the button on the wall that I knew would activate the ghost defense system. A familiar humming filled the house, and I smirked as Vlad fumbled. Suddenly, the hum of the machinery died down. My face slid into a look of horror, and I rapidly hit the button again, not receiving any fairer results.

     "No! No no no no no!!!!!" I cried. Vlad grinned devilishly and approached me with silent footsteps. He grabbed my shirt and pinned me to the wall.

     "Listen, DANIEL, I won't have you foiling our plans. I'm going to rip out your ghost half, and then I'm going to merge with it and escape your puny brain. After that, I'm going to attack everyone you care about and burn Amity Park to the ground," he hissed.

     "You're not real!" I argued.

     "I'm as real as you make me," he sneered. He grabbed my shoulder, twisted me around, and stepped on my ankle. A snapping sound broke through the air, and I fought back a cry. Vlad brought my sprained wrist up above my head and bit into it with his fangs, poisoning me.

     "Vlad!" I gasped, pain flooding my body. My vision began to blur, and I couldn't feel my fingers and toes. My chest started to throb with intense heat. "Vlad!" I was shouting for the real Vlad, hoping that he would wake me up, praying that he would understand. But no reassuring voice came, and no familiar hands wrapped around me in comfort.

     Instead, I was shoved back into HIS chest. He wrapped his arm around me and stepped on my feet, preventing me from kicking him. His other hand reached up and pulled on my hair, bringing my face much closer to his. Another yelp escaped me. This was not happening! This was so not happening!!!

     "Goodbye," Vlad snarled. The claws ejected again and raised above me.

     "I tried-" I whispered, hoping Clockwork would understand. I had tried to face my fears. I had tried to be a hero, and a good son, and a nice student, and a considerate brother, and a thoughtful friend. But all of that was for naught, because now an evil version of me was going to destroy the world, starting will all of my loved ones.

     And the claws slashed through me as the poison's effects really came into play. Phantom hovered over me nervously and fidgeted with his hands.

     "How could you?"

 

-{[(•)]}-

 

     My eyes slid open slowly, taking in the bedroom. It was starting to get light outside again, and I vaguely realized that it was Saturday. Grey clouds blocked out any sunlight, and there were no birds to provide any sweet song. Tiny droplets of rain began to fall as I stared out the window for a few moments.

     I tired to transform, but no rings of light appeared. No familiar pull of a cold sensation, no startlingly white hair and glowing green eyes. I didn't even get any electric shock like last time. I just felt...human.

     I stood and stretched stoically. Clockwork knew this would happen. He told me to face my fears, and I tried. Now I've lost my ghost powers. He knew that would happen too. So it'll probably be alright in the end.

     I must say, I'm not going to start crying. It's all just in my head; I'm a drama-queen, as Clockwork so gently put it. And I'm sure I'll get my powers back soon.

     Something else I must say is, I am still a bit nervous. I'm not going to cry or scream, but I'm nervous. Without my ghost powers, I can't defend anybody. Not even myself.

     On the other hand, without my ghost half, there's little to no chance of HIM ever occurring again. And I can still fight without powers. Really, this isn't all TOO bad of a thing.

     Suddenly, my ghost sense forced itself out of my mouth. I choked on it a bit, knowing that this could be the last time it would ever escape me. After it had left me, panic began to rise. I didn't know where Vlad was, what ghost I was going to fight, or how I was supposed to protect myself.

     Out of no where, someone's left arm wrapped around my arms and chest, pinning me to them. The right hand rested on my stomach. I glanced down out of surprise and noticed the oddly glowing red jacket. My head snapped back up in surprise, and I turned to look at the specter holding me.

     "Spectra." She just smiled devilishly.

     "Yes, Danny," she purred. "I really can't believe you didn't see it sooner! A little freak like you, going through so much MISERY! You're like a magnet, Danny. You're delicious." Her right hand started to slip from my stomach, and I squirmed uncomfortably.

     "Listen, Spectra-" I growled as courageously as I could muster. "I'm so not going to deal with you-" I 'yipped' when she pinched the skin just above my hip with her claws, "-so if you would just go away before I make you."

     "Oh, Danny-" she breathed onto my neck, making my skin crawl, "-your misery! It's giving me so much power! I could just keep you, you know." Her hand moved to my thigh. My senses were immediately on an ever higher alert, if that was possible.

     "GET OFF OF ME!" I screamed. She merely laughed.

     "You're so cute when you're scared!" Spectra squealed. I pulled against her as much as I could, but her grip was like iron! "Don't you know, Danny? You're misery is giving me power! The more upset you get, the more power I receive, and the more I upset you!" Vlad phased through the door in his ghost form at that moment, and I almost shouted for joy. Almost.

     "Spectra?" Vlad questioned, obviously shocked. Spectra barely seemed to notice him, instead choosing to whisper insanities into my ear.

     "You know, with all this power, I could take over your precious little world. Then I could feed on all the misery I want! Of course, to stay so strong, I'd have to keep you pretty depressed. I think I'd just start killing off your relatives," she plotted. Her hands were still siphoning my energy, and my head started to droop. "But I'd also have to keep you contained, you know, to stop you from saving them. And of COURSE, I'd HAVE to keep you informed of the state of the world! All those dying, crying, helpless people, Danny, wanting a hero, NEEDING a hero-" she paused to nip at my ear, to which I flinched away tiredly, "-just BEGGING for mercy. You'd be groveling at my feet, powerless to save just one-"

     "Now you- you leave him alone you witch!" Vlad screamed. Instantly, he teleported behind her and snatched me away.

     "What took you so long?" I breathed.

     "Assessing the situation?" He tried as he flew away through the mansion. I snorted.

     "Okay. Thanks for the help there, hero-" I joked. He set me down lightly.

     "You're welcome. Now wait here while I take care of that-" he started.

     "Vlad," I warned. He rolled his eyes.

     "That sandwich," he muttered. I nodded, and he teleported away. That's about the time when I realized that he had left he in a coat closet.

     "Vlad!"

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     After Daniel had fallen asleep, I had taken it upon myself to get some rest. I was laying in bed when the sun dimly began to rise, and the gray light peeked through the windows. As an early riser, I got out of bed and started to get ready for the day, brushing my hair and dressing and such.

     I was startled as an abrupt scream of, "GET OFF OF ME!" broke through the silence. It was definitely Daniel's voice, but he didn't sound asleep. In fact, he sounded very much awake.

     Without wasting a second, I transformed into my ghostly counterpart and flew through the layers of the mansion to Daniel's door. I phased in and was astonished at the sight before me. Penelope Spectra, the ghostly therapist with a hunger for misery, was draped around Daniel and practically GROPING him!

     "Spectra?" I asked, my eyebrows shooting into my hairline. What on earth was she doing here? Why was she holding Daniel in such a way? It was so grotesque, so perturbing, that I found myself unable to move as she whispered into Daniel's ear and touched him in disturbing ways. She even went so far as to make him flinch away in disgust, but she was feeding off of his energy so his reaction was delayed. His head hung low, and his knees went slack from lack of energy.

     "Now you- you leave him alone you witch!" I cried angrily, teleporting behind the pair to retrieve the boy. Spectra screamed in a blind rage and crashed into the door behind us as I flew through the mansion quickly.

     "What took you so long?" He asked, eyes half-lidded and words slurred. She had drained far too much of his energy.

     "Assessing the situation?" I replied, not wishing to express my utter shock and loathing of the way Spectra had dared to lay a hand on him.

     "Okay, thanks for the help there, hero-" he quipped. I smiled a bit at seeing the return of his more caustic character. Realizing that we had reached our destination, I placed him gently on the ground.

     "You're welcome. Now wait here while I take care of that-" I began, completely ready to spew some colorful words.

     "Vlad," he interrupted. Praise The Lord for his innocence!

     "That sandwich," I corrected with a roll of my eyes. He nodded approvingly, and I teleported back to Daniel's room. I appeared behind Spectra, who had taken to viciously attacking the wooden door. Hearing me, she spun on her heal with a possessive growl.

     "He is MINE! Bring him BACK!" She barked. An even more possessive growl exited me with full permission.

     "How about you BACK OFF?!" I retorted. Daniel was MINE. I had pretty much CLAIMED him, ordering other ghosts to leave my little badger alone. She had no right to come into MY house and call MY Daniel HERS. And Daniel calls ME a fruit loop!

     Spectra lunged with an feral scream, claws drawn and ready to attack. I dodged to the side and blasted her with an ecto-ray.

     "You don't get it!" She yelled. "You freaks just give off so much MISERY! It's a real BUZZ!"

     "And you need to get off your HIGH!" I moved forward and, turning us both intangible, shoved her through several layers to the ground floor, slamming her into the hard floor. But when I stepped back, my hands were steaming painfully.

     "You just don't understand," she smirked, wiping ectoplasmic blood from her lip. "The more upset you get, the more power I receive. Little Danny already figured that one on out from our little session. How about you, VLADDIE?"

     "You aren't worth the time of the day," I sneered. And with those cold words, I hit her with everything I had. Blasts, fire, lightning, weapons of ecto-energy. Finally, she screamed in defeat and faded away.

     "I'm be back!"

     "That's what Arnold Schwarzenegger said, and guess what? He hasn't come back," I snarled. She disappeared from sight, and I hurried back up to get Daniel. Who knows what his emotional state could be after that!

 

-{[(D)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope someone gets some enjoyment out of this fic, which is like 90% angst, 9% uncomfortable and disturbing, and 1% not at all comforting.
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: What's your favorite party decoration? My sister really like balloons, but I love putting up streamers. :)


	7. Chapter 7

-{[(D)]}-

 

     During Vlad's fight with Spectra, I didn't move from my spot other than to sit on my knees. Because, well, I was thinking.

     Spectra was a real jerk, and she just says things to make you miserable so she can take your energy. You really can't win unless you have a pretty good set of earplugs. So I hope Vlad's okay.

     But what I mostly thought about, was my behavior recently. I certainly feel justified. I'm only a kid, after all, and kids need to cry too. Adults cry. Shoot, I've seen my dad cry over much more stupid stuff. So I think my tears were fair, but Clockwork was right. My fears were not. So I need to go back because I've been missing for a day, and who knows how many ghosts have attacked Amity Park. Plus, my family probably went ballistic.....or they didn't even notice.....

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I opened the door to the closet I had left Daniel in, and was mildly surprised to find him facing the door with an almost happy expression.

     My first thought was: Oh dear Lord, he's finally cracked.

     My second was: WHA-?!?

     Daniel lunged forward and wrapped his arms around me, grinning like a madman, which he probably is at this point.

     "Daniel, wha-?!?" I sputtered. I could practically see him rolling his eyes as he spoke.

     "Shut up and enjoy it, fruitloop. This may be the lay time I hug you for a while," he interrupted smugly. My eyes widened as I stared down at his messy, untamed hair.

     "Oh thank The Lord, you're alright!" I gasped and wrapped my arms around him.

     "And thank you!" He declared as he pulled away. "And about everything else, I am so sorry-"

     "Daniel," I interrupted. "I would be very happy of you never said those words to me ever again."

     "What?! But I am! I acted like a nut job, and I'm really-" he attempted.

     "Daniel, just please, please don't do that again. I might break down myself," I begged mockingly. He just stared up at me for a moment.

     "I'm sorry," he said quickly. Over-dramatically, I grabbed my face and started to scream before running back and forth across the hallways. Yes, I am a grown man. Yes, I am a billionaire. Yes, I am Vlad Masters. But I want you to hush all of those thoughts because Daniel isn't crying anymore and it feels fantastic!!!

     The little halfa just laughed and rolled his eyes. "Vlad, stop acting like a fruitloop."

     "Ah, yes," I replied as I slowed to a stop. I smoothed my suit and adjusted my ponytail. "Now, let's go get something to drink and have a talk, hmm?" He stared at me with a tilt of his head for a moment.

     "You know, I really like that humming thing you do. It reminds me of someone," he smirked knowingly and approached me.

     My eyebrows furrowed as I responded, "But who?! I'm the only person that even does that!"

     "Yes, well, let's just say he likes you, hmm?" He teased. I wrapped an arm around my shoulders and led him back through the mansion while a light conversation was passed back and forth between the two of us.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     After Vlad made some hot chocolate for the both of us, we sat down at the bar in his kitchen. I took small sips of my cup, surprised to find it almost cold enough to be bearable. Normal hot chocolate is too warm for my ice core and burns my tongue like crazy. This was just...nice. After a few sips though, I noticed that Vlad was more of playing this his mug, occasionally staring wistfully out the window and taking a sip.

     "Okay. Spill; what's bugging you," I demanded.

     "You read me like an open book," he chuckled. "Hot chocolate is not my preferred drink."

     "It's more than that," I responded casually. I leaned back in my chair and took another drink of the sugary liquid.

     "I want to ask you something, but-" he paused. A small huff escaped me.

     "You're afraid that it'll upset me," I deducted.

     "Pretty much." We both took a long sip from our mugs.

     "Just ask. I'm trying to not be so overly dramatic," I promised.

     "Are you sure? This one question could bring up some very intense trama?" He asked almost teasingly.

     "How bad could it be?" I inquired in the same tone of voice. I leant back a bit more and took another sip of my hot cocoa.

     "Actually-" he sighed. "I have more than one question."

     "I'm sure," I laughed. He rolled his eyes. More hot chocolate drizzled down my throat.

     "Well, what happened that had you so flustered on Thursday night?" He started. I paused.

     "I had a bad day, and my mind kind of went overboard and blew everything WAY out of proportion," I answered.

     "How bad?" He questioned defensively, eyes flashing red. I gulped and resisted the urge to flinch.

     Taking a few seconds to compose myself, I retold the story truthfully, from Dash's pounding to Lancer's charges, my parents ignorance and excessive chores to Jazz's hateful thoughts. Throughout the short tale, Vlad's eyes glowed brighter and brighter, until I was officially nervous.

     Realizing how over dramatic I was being again, I burst with nervous laughter, "Oh my gosh, will you stop? You're freaking me out! That's so creepy!"

     "What?" He questioned, eyes dimming again.

     "Your eyes! They're so creeping me out! Stop!" I cried, laughing. I covered my face and turned away, masking my fear. HE got the red eyes from Vlad, too. How much else was transferred from Vlad to HIM?

     "Like this?" He taunted, making his eyes flash.

     "No!" I laughed harder. Tears leaked from my eyes. "No! Stop! Oh my gosh, Vlad! That's super creepy! Cut it out!"

     "Okay, okay," he relented. I sat up again and wiped my eyes. "Did I really scare you?" I chuckled.

     "No, gosh, Vlad! I was kidding," I rolled my eyes. Another sip of hot cocoa worked it's way down my throat. I grinned happily and leaned back in my chair a bit farther.

     "Good. Now for my main question-" he trailed off, still unsure whether to ask. Honestly, I didn't want him to. I knew what he was going to ask... I think.

     "Just ask-" I sighed. I lifted the mug to my lips completely unprepared for what happened next.

     "Who is HE?" Vlad asked. I choked on the drink and looked back up at Vlad.

     "What?!" I sputtered. I leaned back again, more in an attempt to be farther away from him. He knew this was a touchy subject, especially since what happened on Friday morning. He still asked me about it!!!!!

     "Who is HE? Why won't you just tell me? It's important, and he's clearly upsetting you. I'm frustrated with your lack of response, and I think that it's high time I knew. I can't just sit on my hands, knowing someone is hurting you. I know that he's the cause of your nightmares, and he's obviously done some horrible things in there. I want to know who he is, what he's like, what he LOOKS like. Daniel, I want to find this mysterious HIM and tear him to pieces for all the trouble he's caused you," Vlad rambled angrily. Suddenly, I had leant to far back. My chair toppled backwards and the mug crashed over me, drenching me in the suddenly VERY hot drink. I gasped as it started to seep through my clothing and burn my skin. Yet, Vlad just got up, walked around the corner, and kept talking like nothing had even happened. The closer he got, the more I backed away. The hot chocolate was scalding my chest, so I held the tender area and tried to cool it with my ice powers. Finally, Vlad stared down at me with an intense red gaze.

     "W-why?" I stuttered. Why didn't he help me when I fell? Why didn't he try to alleviate the burning? Why didn't he stop talking? Why were his eyes glowing? Was I crying again? Was he shocked? Was he mad? Just how much did he want answers?

     Purely out of reflex, I tried to transform. Maybe I thought his eyes would change back to blue at seeing my distress. Maybe I thought I could intimidate him into shutting up. Maybe I just wanted to freeze the burn skin on my chest. Somehow, someway, I transformed. My onyx hair turned ivory, and my sapphire eyes became emerald green. My messy, wet clothes were switched with my clean black jumpsuit.

     But Vlad didn't stop. He kept talking and getting closer and staring. In fact, his eyes became even more red. I choked on any words that tried to form, and even though I knew I could trust him and he wouldn't hurt me, he was scaring me. I wanted to get away.

     "W-why?" I repeated. With those final words, I turned intangible and flew from the mansion. My hands clung to my jumpsuit, using my powers to cool the ache from the burn. Small, confused tears leaked from my eyes again.

     "Clockwork," I called. "Was this supposed to happen? Am I doing okay? Should I be allowed to fly away at all?" I took another shaky breath as I flew over Amity Park. "Aren't I supposed to face my problems?" The moon barely shone through the clouds, and I couldn't see the stars above to comfort me. "I tried. Clockwork, I really, really tried! I'm so sorry. I tried. Don't be mad? I did, I tried. I didn't let myself get too freaked out with Spectra, and I tried to keep it together with Vlad, but Clockwork-" A flash of green later, I was spiraling down into the city of Amity Park head first.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I should have stopped when Daniel first showed signs of nervousness at my questioning. I gave him the 'scary eyes' so to speak, and that didn't make him feel better in the slightest. He went even so far as to cover his face, laughing like it was hysterical. But I could sense the nervousness and fear boiling below the surface.

     Still, I had to ask what was on my mind. His response was, of course, negative. Then it was like the flood gates opened, and all of my frustration poured out of me in waves. Everything I had wondered and thought from since I found Daniel in that alleyway Thursday night.

     I must have frightened him greatly, because he fell out of his chair, and spilt his hot chocolate all over himself. A small part of my yelled to help him, but the more powerful side still wanted answers. The side, that still wanted I be a villain.

     That's how I came to find myself towering over him. Tears streaked down his face, and he clutched his chest. His breathing was ragged, and he fumbled to find something to say. He tried transforming to his ghostly counterpart, successfully, but I didn't even flinch. Why didn't I flinch? I know not.

     Daniel stuttered a final, "W-why?" Then he flew from the window quickly. I stood for a moment, staring at where he had been. I had made him cower. I had made him flee.

     Yet... I felt nothing. No emotions sparked up inside me until I turned and saw his shattered mug. Had I too shattered our relationship?

     I fell to my knees. I always do this. I always come so close, only to loose control and push him away. I had him laughing. I had him smirking and smiling and joking and cocky and caustic. I had him perfect and normal and happy. And I scared him off.

     "Daniel. I'm sorry."

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     "Jack-"

     "Molecule by-"

     "Spectral energy is off the-!"

     "Mads-"

     "He's coming to." The voices broke through the dark silence. Silence. How wonderful. I haven't heard silence in forever. Why does it have to end?

     I drowsily opened my eyes. Blurred vision prevented me from recognizing my surroundings immediately, but the shard smell of chemicals told me I was in the lab. The lab...? My left wrist felt pretty heavy, and my head throbbed. I licked my chapped lips and looked up into the bright lights above me.

     "Wha-?" I murmured quietly. What happened? My memories slowly started to pour back into me. My mini fight with Vlad. My dramatic escape. A bright green light and unconsciousness. It was like something clicked into place right then. "No-" I focused more intently on my surroundings, begging my eyes to work. "No! No! No no no no!"

     "Something wrong, Phantom?" My mom asked from across the lab.

     I groaned, "This cannot be happening." My right hand dragged slowly down my face.

     "Well, it is. Don't worry, we won't do anything so serious yet," Jack assured.

     "I feel so much better." I can't deal with this right now. I need food. And proper sleep. And probably another shower.

     "Sorry, Phantom. Your quips won't get you out of this one," My mom called.

     "Sorry to be such a disappointment."

     "Well, it won't be like this for long. We need you to wake up a bit more before questioning begins," she explained.

     "Questioning?" I asked.

     "Yes. We will interrogate you. Then, we're going to dissect you. If there anything left after that, then, I think Jack'd like to tear you apart molecule by molecule," she clarified.

     "Sounds delightful. Where's the sign up sheet-" I started hopefully, ending with a frustrated, "-I'd like to burn it."

     "He's kinda funny, Mads," Dad grinned to my mom.

     "He's also a ghost, Jack. We hunt ghosts? Let's just get on with the questioning," she insisted. He nodded vigorously.

     This was about the time when the concept of escape reached me. I was going to stand, stretch a tiny bit and fly away, before coming back in my bedroom and going to sleep. Of course, this was also the time I realized the dead weight on my left wrist was an ecto-proof hand cuff chaining me to the wall. Lovely.

     My mom and dad pulled up chairs at a line about five feet from where I sat. Mom now held a clipboard, and Dad was fiddling with some sort of gun.

     "Now, we're going to ask you some questions. If you don't answer truthfully, Jack'll electrocute you," she explained. One of my eyebrows raised.

     "How will you know if I'm telling the truth or not?" I asked.

     "Science," she smirked. Ha. She doesn't actually know anything... Crap, she's going to think all of my answers are lies..... Dang it! I hate Saturdays!

     "Question one," my dad announced excitedly.

     "What is your name?" Mom declared. Both of my eyebrows were raised now.

     "Danny Phantom."

     "How old are you?"

     "14."

     "No, how OLD are you? How long have you been both alive and dead together?"

     "14, I just told you."

     "Don't sass me, ghost. Just answer the questions. What is your obsession?"

     "I don't know.... I think it could be protecting people if I really have to have one..... I don't really think I actually have one..."

     "What are your powers?"

     "Okay, how the heck are you supposed to know if I'm lying about this one? I could say that I can turn into a giant purple hippo! How would you prove me wrong?!"

     "Jack-"

     "Fine! Fine! Okay, I have the basic powers, intangibility, invisibility, and flight; advanced powers, ecto-rays, ectoplasm manipulation; core powers, ice; and my special power, my ghostly wail. I think that's it."

     "Where do you live?"

     "Here, in Amity Park."

     "Where?"

     "I just kind of roam."

     "That's a lie. We would pick you up on our scanners. Jack, please-"

     "No! No! Wai- AHHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     Once the mug had been cleaned up, I took a shower and tried to clear my head. I needed to go back and apologize to Daniel, that's a fact. I cannot allow myself to have talked to him in such a way. So after my shower was completed, I redressed and vaguely realized it was nighttime when I flew from my mansion. The strange thing was, I could sense Daniel. Not in the 'ghost sense' way, as Daniel likes to call it. In the, he's in ghost mode and I can tell way. There's not A way to describe it. And as much as I could sense his ghost half being used, I could also sense his distress. My actual 'ghost sense' didn't alert me to any ghosts for Daniel to fight. So maybe he was being attacked by ghost hunters..... Madeline and Jack! Those fools!!!

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     "Interrogation complete. We already ran diagnostics while you were unconscious. Now it's time for the dissection," my mom announced when I first awakened.

     "Hmmm? Whadda you mmn?" I mumbled groggily. All I could remember was pain. And electrocution. I think I blacked out during the interrogation..... Great.

     "Jack, set him up please-" suddenly I was being lifted, and my situation hit me again.

     "W-wait! No! Hold on just a minute!" I begged as my limp body was laid on the examination table. "Please! Please wait! I'm just like you! This isn't right!"

     "Just like us?! Just like US?! You are an evil manifestation-" Mom started to shout.

     "Of post human consciousness!" I completed for her. "I know! I used to be just as human as you! All that changed was my status from living to dead! I have thoughts, feelings, emotions! I can experience pain! I'm pretty much human!"

     "YOU ARE NOT! YOU ARE EVIL!"

     "WHY DOES DYING MAKE ME EVIL?! I DO EVERYTHING I CAN TO SAVE PEOPLE!"

     "YOU KIDNAPPED THE MAYOR AND ROBBED MULTIPLE BANKS!"

     "I WAS FRAMED AND UNDER MIND CONTROL!"

     "THAT ISN'T POSSIBLE!"

     "OBVIOUSLY YES BECAUSE IT HAPPENED!!!!!" A gloved hand slammed down on a flashing button, and electricity coursed through my body.

     "It's time for you to stop lying," she hissed. As soon as the pain stopped and I was left panting, I continued my case.

     "Listen, Mrs.Fenton. I'm as old as your son. I died less than a year ago. What did I do to deserve- THIIIISSSSSS!!!!" Why was she electrocuting me?!

     "HOW DO YOU KNOW HOW OLD MY SON IS!!!!!"

     "MAYBE WE WERE FRIENDS!!!!!"

     "MY SON WOULDN'T BE FRIENDS WITH A GHOST!" She twisted a knob and increased the power.

     "AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!"

     "Maddie? Should I prepare the tools?" Dad questioned.

     "Yes, Jack- do that. I need a moment-" she sighed and rubbed her temples. You need a moment?! YOU need a MOMENT?! I need my LIFE BACK!!!!! I need you to stop ELECTROCUTING ME!!!!!

     I sat there still panting for a moment as Mom exited the lab and Dad set up a tray. I glared at her retreating form for a moment before I turned to what Dad was doing. Sharp and shiny instruments stared back at me. I gulped.

     "Please tell me those are sterile," I called. Dad glanced up at me.

     "You're pretty smart for a spook. Most specters can't even form coherent sentences. You're probably got the most advanced specimen we've ever studied," he complimented.

     "Thanks, I guess? Wait- you've done this before?" I asked with wide eyes. He nodded silently.

    "Well, we are ghost hunters. It's our job to study what we catch," he shrugged.

     "I know that. It's just- don't you ever feel sorry? Most ghosts were once human beings," I wondered. He huffed.

     "Sort of. Sometimes I wonder who they were, what they were like. But I have to remind myself that all of that doesn't matter now. It's been lost and replaced with their obsessions," he explained. I rolled my eyes. "Say, do you remember who you were?" I coughed.

     "Yeah, sometimes I feel like I'm still alive."

     "You remember your loved ones? Your name? Favorite color?"

     "I had both of my parents and an older sibling, I didn't exactly change my name much, and my favorite color's always been blue," I answered truthfully. I didn't care if anyone figured it out anymore. It'd just be less trouble for me. Less lying, less secrets, and more people to fall back on.

     "Gosh," Dad sighed, "This dissection is going to be a lot harder now. Knowing that you had a family- and you remember them!"

     "Jack, honey, don't be silly. He can't possibly remember them," Mom cut him off as she marched down the stairs.

     "I died less than a year ago," I reminded. "My whole family is still alive, except-" I frowned, "-they don't even know that I'm gone."

     "Did you run away?" My dad questioned.

     "No, Jack, don't listen to him. It's all lies," Maddie declared. My eyes flared.

     "How do you know?! I talked to my older sibling just this Thursday!" I argued.

     "Stop lying! You're not leaving this examination table! You're not leaving this lab! You're not leaving this house!" She shouted. I blinked quickly to hide my tears at the realization at just how true that was. "We are going to cut you open and dissect you! We are going to find out what makes you tick, and then we are going to rip every atom of your being apart until there's nothing of you left!!"

     "Fine! DESTROY ME! I BEG OF YOU!" I yelled. Tears welled up despite my attempts to fight them. I forced my eyes shut and looked away. "Just... J-just get it over with."

     "Maddie-" Jack tried.

     "Don't let his get in your head, Jack. It's not real-" she leaned in front of my face, and I could feel her hot breath. "I bet you think you're clever. Well, I'm here to tell you that you're not. You don't have emotions. You can't feel pain. No one even remembers you."

     "I know." My eyes had opened at some point, and I could tell she was taken aback. She moved way from the examination table and glanced back at Jack as she went to pick up a scalpel. I just watched with dead eyes.

     She didn't even realize. Had she even noticed that Danny Fenton was gone? Had the school even bothered to call them about my absence on Friday? Did Sam and Tucker think to call me? And Jazz- did she try to talk to me either? Everyone didn't even notice.

     "So you admit it," my mom hissed.

     "So I did. Go ahead. End my miserable existence. I guess I deserve it. Please, go right ahead. Don't mind me if I start crying. I'm only a ghost. My emotions aren't real," I shrugged lightly. Really, it felt like everything was ripping my heart out again. I didn't have Vlad. I didn't have Sam or Tucker or Jazz. I didn't have my parents. They really did hate me, and I was going to die.

     "See, Jack? I told you," Maddie announced triumphantly.

     "I don't know, Mads. I think you hurt his feelings," Jack bit his bottom lip.

     "He is an IT, Jack. IT is a ghost. IT doesn't have feelings. Let's just get started," she hissed. The scalpel hovered barely an inch above my chest. My head fell back against the metallic table. I bit my lower lip, and tears skipped past my eyelashes and moved down my cheeks. I let my eyes slide closed. It just isn't worth it anymore.

 

-{[(V)]}-

 

     I hadn't realized how late it was when I halted my flight above Fenton Works. I had flown away from the mansion only minutes ago, but the moon was already high in the sky. Why didn't I go after Daniel sooner? How could I be so blind? Were answers really as important as my little badger's well being?

     Turning invisible, I dove into Daniel's home and sank into the lab. I can't say I was entirely shocked to find Maddie and Jack standing over him, about to cut Daniel open. I was even less shocked to see Daniel just taking it like he deserved it.

     "You sicken me," I growled as I appeared in the plane of visibility. I floated just near Daniel's head, where white hairs stood out in all direction.

     "Vlad," Daniel choked on a happy sob.

     "Why are you here spook?" Jack demanded.

     "Why else? To rescue the innocent teen in front of you," I sneered. My right hand blasted the control panel, destroying it, and my left hand stroked Daniel's hair in a comforting manner. The shackles popped open with a pressurized hiss.

     "No ghost is innocent," Maddie snarled.

     "Oh Madeline? Will you never learn? I once loved you, but it seems as if I was blind to your true, repulsive nature," I smiled sadly. I scooped Daniel up and held him to my chest again. Much like Thursday night, he curled up against me.

     "Thank you," he breathed. Jack pulled out a weapon and aimed it at us.

     "Stop, spooks!" He demanded.

     "Or what? You'll shoot? How original, Jack," I scoffed.

     "We'll both shoot. We'll shoot both of you," Maddie corrected. Bickering rose between the three of us as Daniel grew more and more tense in my arms.

     "Please!" He finally interrupted. I glanced down and held him just a little closer.

     "Maddie, Jack," I spit out. In a swirl of magenta energy, I teleported us away. "How bad?"

     "Just some interrogation and electrocution. Don't worry; I won't cry," Daniel stated solemnly.

     "It's okay to cry, just not all the time. Only cry when it really is needed," I advised.

     "Yeah. Okay. Thanks again," he apologized. He floated away from my arms.

     "You really want to go back?" I questioned.

     "Their my parents. I love them, even if they don't understand. They didn't know, and they hunt ghosts to protect us," he shrugged. "I can't really blame them."

     "They forgot about your human half," I observed.

     "I don't know that for certain," he bit his lower lip. "I should get back."

     "Okay-" I agreed, "-but I'm coming to check on you this Monday."

     "Sure. See you then!" He waved. We went our separate ways.

 

-{[(D)]}-

 

     Once I got home, I was surprised to find that Sam and Tucker had blown up my phone with messages. Jazz was sitting on my bed crying. She looked shocked to see me.

     "Danny!" She cried and lunged for me. Her shaking arms wrapped around me. "I thought for sure you had run away. I'm so sorry! I was so caught up in my studies the other night. I didn't mean it; you are not selfish at all. I'm so sorry!"

     "Jazz! Jazz! It's okay! I forgive you," I grinned. "But I'd really like to get back to Sam and Tucker."

     "Of course. And I'm sorry. Really, I will be here for you," she promised. I nodded. Jazz exited the room, and I took her place on my bed to read my messages.

     Every message from Sam and Tucker explained how tired they had been or how sorry they were, how much they regretted saying what they did and how worried they were.

     I decided that the best course of action was to call both of them. So I started with Tucker. The phone barely rang before he picked up.

     "Danny! Dude, I'm so sorry! You have no idea! I was just SO tired! I didn't mean to blow up on you like that! I'm so SO-" he burst.

     "Dude! Chill! It's okay!" I assured. "I reacted badly too. You're fine."

     "No! I'm not fine! I barely even listened to what you had to say and I just blew you off! You could have been DYING!" He exaggerated.

     "But I wasn't, and everything's fine now. I forgive you, but I really just need to call Sam now," I concluded.

     "Okay! But call me back right after!" He insisted.

     "I will!" I chuckled. The called ended with that, and I dialed Sam's number.

     "Danny?" She asked, sounding like she had been crying.

     "Yeah, it's me. Are you alright?" I inquired cautiously.

     "THANK THE LORD I THOUGHT YOU HATED ME I'M SO SORRY I SHOULDN'T HAVE YELLED AT YOU PLEASE DON'T HATE ME WHAT IF YOU NEEDED HELP OR SOMETHING AND I TRIED CALLING TUCKER BUT HOLY CRAP DANNY PLEASE DON'T HATE ME!" She cried.

     "I love you, Sam," I smiled.

     "You're an idiot."

 

-{[(-THE END-)]}-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am pretty much left with no words...
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: What did you think? Please tell me any of your thoughts and anything you enjoyed! There probably wasn't much but let's focus on the positives, m'kay??? M'kay. It's been a long, LONG tim since I originally wrote this, and I'm happy to say my writing has improved significantly. This is dramatic and disturbing, but "The Secret" was just another stepping stone as I learned how to charactize, develop plots, and put together logical scenes. When I get to posting my more recent work, I hope you enjoy!

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, so, it only gets worse from here!
> 
> QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: Do you like applesauce? I love applesauce, and I love that there are so many flavors available. My favorite is probably tropical, from Tree Top!


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